Xenophobia not behind the dismissal of a Nigerian doctor

Provincial health spokesperson Prince Hamnca said: “He was purely dismissed in line with the Public Service Act.”

Hamnca added the department disagreed that it seemed like an extreme case of xenophobia and that the Public Service Act regulated all public servants, Rekord East reported.

Sidney Eissen, a Nigerian doctor living with narcolepsy, a sleep disorder, accused the department of being xenophobic and unfairly discriminating against him because of his illness. Eissen was reportedly suing the department for R600 000, claiming they dismissed him at the end of 2012 without a valid reason, disciplinary hearing or warnings.

It is alleged his salary was also decreased while he was still working for the department. Eissen claimed the department had blocked his staff number, a number every government employee receives, effectively stemming his ability to get a job at the KwaZulu-Natal department of health.

However, Hamnca said Eissen’s staff number was blocked because he was absent for more than 30 calendar days, which was regarded as abandonment. Eissen said he was “glued to his bed” during this period and could not move, adding that he did have sick leave.

Hamnca declined to comment on Eissen’s legal action against the department. “We are not aware of the case and could not comment,” he said.

Eissen is reportedly jobless and lives on the streets of Elarduspark, in the east of Pretoria.

– Caxton News Service