By Kaya 959 Reporter
Gauteng officials are set to take legal action against the Independent Media group following the release of an explosive report on the Tembisa 10.
The Gauteng Provincial Government says a senior counsel has been briefed on the matter. Officials say they will be serving the media group with court papers in due course.
Earlier this year, Gosiame Sithole made headlines after the group claimed she had given birth to 10 babies.
At the time, the group published a number of stories online and via its print titles.
On Wednesday, Independent Media’s chairperson Dr Iqbal Survé claimed a “deep dive investigation” revealed the sordid details of the birth of the babies.
He says they were able to uncover human trafficking syndicates operating in both state and private hospitals.
Government departments were implicated in the syndicates, says Survé. He claims the babies were trafficked.
Survé says there was also an attempt to keep Sithole quiet and she was not allowed to see her babies.
ALSO READ: WATCH: Tembisa 10 mother hits back after father claims babies don’t exist
Gauteng officials refute claims
The Gauteng Provincial Government says Sithole claimed to have given birth to the babies at the Tembisa Hospital. Various tests were conducted to determine her state of health.
“The doctors established that the woman did not give birth to any babies nor was she pregnant in recent times,” the GPG says.
The GPG adds that it cannot stand by while serious allegations are made against nurses, doctors, hospital management, and health officials.
“These are women and men of integrity who are working selflessly and honestly every day to save lives and at times even risking their own lives.
“Government is duty-bound to protect the integrity of all government officials as well as that of public institutions,” the GPG says.
Survé says Independent Media has been continuously threatened with legal action by the government over its controversial ‘Tembisa 10’ story.
He claims the company was threatened over the publishing of the news articles.
“We ignored all of them. We invited them to summons us,” he adds.
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