[imagesource:tiktok]

The case against Doctor Matthew ‘Nope’ Lani, or whatever name he goes by now, continues to unfold in new directions.

After being found out, denounced, and dragged all over the internet for allegedly posing as a doctor in hospitals to post content to his social media pages where he would dish out unprofessional medical advice, TikTok’s famous ‘Dr Matthew Lani’ was finally arrested.

On a few occasions, Lani sauntered audaciously around Helen Joseph Hospital to create content but was finally apprehended by security guards and handed over to the police. He was dressed in a surgical mask with a stethoscope around his neck and a SpongeBob hoodie for extra silliness.

Lani passed himself off as a doctor, dispensed medical advice and sold ‘pharmaceuticals’ online, duping his tens of thousands of followers, tertiary institutions, media practitioners and health officials as he went along. He even managed to get a sit-down interview on SABC 3, as well as R2000’s #BetterTogether with Ntombi Meso, while also being interviewed in a 40-minute interview on Talk Radio 702 in the summer of 2021, per News24.

He peddled his narrative of being the youngest qualified doctor in the country and shared his story of being HIV-positive, while dispensing tips on HIV prevention and management, as well as skincare tips every once in a while.

Earlier this month, CapeTalk reported that the charge of impersonating a doctor was withdrawn against him and the case was not placed on the roll because there was not enough evidence to lead to a successful prosecution.

“The problem is that the HPCSA (Health Profession Council of SA) didn’t press charges. The NPA is within its right to not press charges. Everything rests with them to protect the integrity of their profession. If the body you claim you belong to doesn’t act when you put them into disrepute, no one can do anything,” attorney Isaac Moselane told TimesLive.

Now, another criminal case has been registered against the TikTok influencer in his North West hometown, reported News24. Whistleblower Bonolo Gomolemo Seleke opened a perjury case against Lani at the Christiana police station on Tuesday.

Seleke is the first known person to confront Lani on Facebook after he claimed in posts between 2020 and 2021 that he was a doctor at the Christiana Hospital and neighbouring Utlwanang Clinic. She claimed Lani even advised people on Facebook about critical medication such as antiretroviral treatment and pre-exposure prophylaxis PrEP).

“I maintained and challenged most of his posts on Facebook to prove that he was lying,” she told News24.

At the time, Seleke had to bear the brunt of locals who accused her of being jealous of Lani’s achievement. This affected Seleke emotionally, forcing her to quit her job in 2021 as a contact tracer at Utlwanang Clinic – the same institution Lani claimed he was working as a doctor.

Meanwhile, Lani was gaining popularity, amassing 294,000 TikTok followers and more than three million likes.

“Lani destroyed me emotionally. I was [the] laughing stock [of] Christiana. I was ridiculed and insulted by people in my community. People of Christiana defended Lani, claiming he was a doctor.

“I know that I am vindicated. However, that is not enough. Lani destroyed me and others, including Dr Sanele Zingelwa from Tembisa Hospital. The time has arrived for him to face the consequences of his deeds.”

Zingelwa, a registered second-year medical intern at Tembisa Hospital whose identity was allegedly stolen and used by Lani, opened a case against the impostor.

“I opened a case against him after he stole my identity in August. I thought there would be progress on my case. It had been a while since I opened that case. Opening a case against Lani didn’t deter him from impersonating me as a doctor on TikTok.

WITS and the HPCSA have denounced Lani’s actions and claims, and after being arrested, he admitted that he wasn’t a doctor. Yet he threatened to sue the Gauteng health department for damaging his reputation and for injuries he allegedly sustained when security guards collared him. He even managed to obtain a restraining order against Seleke.

Hopefully, the case of perjury – which is the offence of wilfully telling an untruth or making a misrepresentation under oath – set against Lani will help to undo this nonsense.

The fact that Lani is getting away with this ridiculousness is a “symptom of a crippled system that the public has little faith in and doesn’t take seriously”, notes CapeTalk’s Mandy Wiener.

“His façade assumes that he won’t be caught and that there will be no repercussions. The fact that he dared to return to the Helen Joseph Hospital, not once but twice, after being exposed as a fraud weeks ago, speaks to the fact that the system is broken. How is he still getting away with this?”

Referencing the brazenness of Thabo Bester making a mockery of the correctional service system, Weiner notes that it often takes a high-profile case to shine the spotlight on an entire system that isn’t working and get the government and officials to do better.

“In the case of Matthew Lani, the medical profession, government health officials and law enforcement must ensure that he is made an example of and reigned in, so he no longer continues to make a mockery of the system and restore public confidence.”

[sources:capetalk&news24]