Following Acting Justice Narandran Kollapen’s decision on 6 May to receive judgment in both the BHF and Western Province cases on procedural grounds, Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi accused judges of not being objective.
He suggested that judges might not be objective because they are "beneficiaries" of the current private healthcare system - specifically citing a medical scheme for judges called Parmed - which the NHI Act aims to restructure.
The advocacy group Judges Matter criticised Motsoaledi’s comments, calling them an "attack on judges' character" and urging the Minister to retract his remarks and apologise, citing potential unconstitutional interference with the judiciary.
Opposition parties, including the Democratic Alliance (DA), have referred Motsoaledi's comments to President Cyril Ramaphosa, arguing that questioning judicial impartiality undermines the rule of law and is a "smokescreen" to hide deficiencies in the NHI proposal.
Motsoaledi has maintained he did not intend to personally attack the judges but expressed concern about the structural bias of those who benefit from private healthcare. – Business Day (14 May 2026)