UPDATE ON E-DISCLOSURE

Due to the ongoing issue of the request for doctors employed in the public sector to disclose their financial interest through an electronic system , SAMA leadership has been made aware and have noted disciplinary action taken against some of our members in certain parts of Kwazulu- Natal. Stemming from the information provided , SAMA endeavoured to face the matter head-on given the urgency. As a result , we confirm and advise of the following:

• That the issue on e-disclosure was indeed discussed and negotiated at length with the Department of Public Service and Administration as well as the Department of Health.
• That the issue was further discussed with other trade unions at the ground level.
• The PSCBC also gave us the platform to raise the matter as alluded to in our previous communications
• That SAMA sought legal opinion on this matter, in particular on the contention that there is an infringement of the right to privacy
  
  We are therefore guided by the outcome of the processes followed in the past months and therefore advise members to comply with the instruction to disclose as it is inevitable based on the legal opinion sourced. SAMA does not dispute the legality of the disclosure itself however objects to the security and protection of the supplied personal financial information. As a result thereof, SAMA continues to engage the Department of Health to obtain an undertaking that the information provided by our members remain confidential and secured and that it does not at all infringe on any right. SAMA is also mindful of the provisions of the law on the right to privacy and the right to protected disclosure . Such rights are also incupsulated in the POPI Act, the Constitution etc. What is worth noting is that POPI Act provides in Section 13 that personal information can only be collected for a specific, explicitly defined and lawful purpose and the subject must be aware of the purpose for which the information is being collected.

We taken heed of the concerns raised yet urge members to disclose so as to avoid any intended disciplinary action. Any queries, comments and/or submissions may be send to labour@samedical.org.

The South African Medical Association - Postal Address-The South African Medical Association P O Box 74789,Lynnwood Ridge Pretoria 0040, South Africa Physical address The South African Medical Association, Block F Castle Walk Corporate Park Nossob Street Erasmuskloof Ext3 Pretoria 0181,
South Africa www.samedical.org

If you no longer wish to receive these emails, simply click on the following link Unsubscribe.