Public told to report COVID-19 fraud

JUBA – Officials of South Sudan’s ministry of health are urging the public to report corrupt doctors and coronavirus fraud, threatening to sue any medical expert found charging public for coronavirus testing certificates in the country.

This came following reports about Public Health Laboratory doctors charging travelers a certain amount for coronavirus testing both at Juba International Airport and Nimule border crossing.

Speaking during the 2020 Medical Symposium organized by South Sudan Doctors’ Union under the theme “South Sudan Response to COVID-19 Pandemic: Sharing Lessons Learned and Way forward” in Juba on Saturday, Professor Simon Deng, the director for COVID-19 at the Public Health Laboratory, said coronavirus testing  remains free.

“Let me assure you that testing in the laboratory is free to everybody, and if anybody asks you for money, please sue him immediately,” Deng said.

The health official advised travelers to report such cases to top management at the Public Emergency Center without any further delay.

As of Saturday, the country has confirmed 2,926 cases with 2,673 recoveries as well as 59 deaths since the first case was announced on March 5.