POST REPORTER|Published4 hours agoHonouring Babita Deokaran: A call to protect whistleblowers

KwaZulu-Natal Premier Honourable Thamsanqa Ntuli joined the family of slain whistleblower Babita Deokaran to unveil a memorial monument in her honour. The ceremony took place at the Shri Marriammen Temple Heritage Site in Mount Edgecombe, Durban, where Deokaran grew up. It marks roughly five years since her August 2021 assassination.

She was murdered outside her Johannesburg home after exposing extensive corruption within the Gauteng Department of Health. KWAZULU-Natal Premier Thamsanqa Ntuli called for enhanced protection of whistleblowers while commemorating Babita Deokaran, a courageous figure who lost her life exposing corruption in the Gauteng Health Department. He was speaking on Sunday, at the unveiling of a monument, by the Mount Edgecombe Arts and Cultural Centre, at the Shri Marieammen Temple, in honour of the Deokaran.

Deokaran worked as a senior official at the Gauteng Health Department. She flagged suspicious, irregular and fraudulent transactions at Tembisa Hospital estimated to be over R850 million. Ntuli said Deokaran, who was gunned down during Women’s Month, displayed the courage of more than 20 000 women who marched to the Union Buildings, to protest against the oppressive Pass Laws.

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Deokaran was killed outside her home on August 23, 2021. “When confronted with corruption and the plunder of public resources meant for the vulnerable, Babits did not look away. She did not remain silent.

She raised her voice and took a stand. “Her courage cost her her life, but it did not defeat her spirit. Her sacrifice reminded us all of the profound duty we carry as public servants and citizens to guard the integrity of our democratic institutions.

Babita exemplified the finest qualities of South African womanhood: strength, resilience, unyielding principle, and selfless service.” He urged those in attendance to celebrate Women’s Day by honouring the bravery and tenacity shown by Deokaran, which was reminiscent of the courage and bravery displayed by the women in 1956. Ntuli said we should also honour her legacy by playing a pro-active role in the fight against crime and corruption in all sectors of government and society. “Government, law enforcement and the entire criminal justice system needs to do better, we have to protect all the brave men and women who are willing to assist to crack and prosecute major cases thus exposing and dismantling crime syndicates”.

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