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Skelms are exploiting us (illustration)

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In African tradition - many would venture - the dead are sacred and anything to do with them should be treated with utmost respect.

But in pursuit of things material no holy cows are left untouched, it seems. Sowetan yesterday ran what to many must have been a shocking exposé about unscrupulous undertakers paying corrupt officials at Chris Hani-Baragwanath Hospital to release lists of the freshly deceased so that they could jump the queue and offer their dubious services.

Hospital management has promised to investigate the practice which, according to a deep throat, has been going on for years.

We welcome the probe but draw little comfort from claims by the South African Funeral Practitioners Association that it has tried in vain to discuss the matter with Bara.

The whole saga is perhaps symptomatic of the way society at large is turning out.

Why do many among us let go of our values the minute an opportunity arises?

The undertakers exploiting the system, if the evident shambles at Bara could pass for that, would not have stood a chance had there been no one willing to be corrupted in the corridors.

It is a microcosm of a nation so entangled in corruption that it is almost expected that there is someone at every turn willing to take the bait.

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Sun May 19 11:18:06 SAST 2013 ::

Aug 15, 2012

tpaz

@Sowetan, Funeral Practitioners are there to make money. Don't you write dirty sexy stories, and expose people private lives just to sell papers. In most cases you don't even have the other side of the story.

We are here to make money , as long as it is not illegal. It might be immoral but who are you to judge?
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Aug 15, 2012

januswanus

Whoever created money put the world in hostage.
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Aug 15, 2012

Mas-culin

These staff members have no morals...

masculinnkosi_gmail
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Aug 15, 2012

Galfrend

hai lafa elihle. People have become lovers of money. Uphi unembeza?
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Aug 15, 2012

Reyataz

"It is a microcosm of a nation so entangled in corruption that it is almost expected that there is someone at every turn willing to take the bait" Yes, what do you expect of a nation that votes for a std 2 serial fornicator to be their president?
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Aug 15, 2012

LBS

@Reyataz
"It is a microcosm of a nation so entangled in corruption that it is almost expected that there is someone at every turn willing to take the bait" Yes, what do you expect of a nation that votes for a std 2 serial fornicator to be their president?

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Good comment!!

It is as a result of stories similar to this that I am no longer an organ donor.
There is no respect for the dead, and I have seen reports of body parts being removed for muthi as well.
Well mine are now off the 'shopping list'!!
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Aug 15, 2012

Lehido

i wonder how some people sleep at night
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Aug 15, 2012

Maratahelele

I am glad this is now in the open. The practice has been going on for ages. Our family has experienced this first hand when you have an agent advise you about the funeral arrangements without the body being removed from the hospital ward. They work in cahoots with the nurses. Also to try and get your undertaker to remove the body from the hospital, they will tell you stories about the doctor not being available to with the documents to release the body. How pathetic!

Apparently the guy who runs the morgue is a law unto himslef. People will even struggle to have the burial on time as he would decide when to release the body. What a sad state of affirs!
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