/ 29 June 2010

Court rejects Basson application

An appeal application by Wouter Basson to overturn a court ruling allowing the HPCSA to continue probing his conduct was dismissed on Tuesday.

An appeal application by former apartheid-era germ warfare expert Wouter Basson to overturn a court ruling allowing the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) to continue probing his conduct was dismissed in the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria on Tuesday.

In dismissing the application with costs, Judge Eberhard Bertelsmann reinforced a previous judgement that there was no indication that HPCSA registrar and CEO Boyce Mkhize tried to influence investigations to find Basson guilty of unethical behaviour.

“There is no prospect of this argument succeeding.”

The HPCSA had for the past 10 years been investigating Basson, who headed Project Coast — the apartheid government’s biological and chemical weapons programme. The cardiologist was acquitted in 2002 on criminal charges.

Basson had attempted to stop the inquiry, which he claimed was procedurally unfair and a “witch hunt”.

Basson’s counsel, advocate Jaap Cilliers, had on Monday morning argued that Mkhize influenced investigations, a claim which was decried as “absolutely preposterous” by HPCSA’s counsel, advocate Gilbert Marcus.

“They are just trying to frustrate the process … the argument is utterly without merit and should be dismissed as such … It is ill-conceived and hopeless,” said Marcus.

Basson is now left with two options — he can accept the judgement and deal with the HPCSA internal disciplinary process, or approach the Supreme Court of Appeal. — Sapa