They were lodged by one Hilary Phillips against 'Dr' Phamy Rehema and 'Prof' Rodney Ketta. Phillips asked the ASA to investigate possible misleading and unsubstantiated claims [hello!] as well as the use of titles such as 'Dr' and 'Prof' in the pamphlets.
Needless to say, neither ‘Dr' Phamy Rehema nor 'Prof' Rodney Ketta would submit substantiating documents or even confirm their contact details.
"Despite all reasonable efforts made to elicit a response from the advertiser, no response was received," the ASA ruling reads in an incredulous tone on the non co-operative Ketta.
"The respondent was telephonically advised about the complaint but refused to divulge his contact details where the correspondence from the Directorate could be sent to. The Directorate therefore had no alternative but to rule on the matter based on the information available."
The ASA then proceeds to lament the "proliferation of charlatan healers in recent years" and express concern that they tend to use "unregulated forms of media, such as flyers distributed by hand, to promote their businesses based on unsubstantiated claims."
What did the ASA expect - a reasonable debate on the merits of herbal medicine? These cases shows how first world institutions fail to comprehend that they do not exert influence on the less developed aspects of the informal economy. Not only is it operating in a vastly different business and social environment but the informal economy does not lend itself to rigid institutional control. Not even by the ASA.
The ASA insisted on passing sanction and its by now largely irrelevant ruling goes into bureaucratic overdrive to note the pamphlets in question are in contravention of "Clause 4.1 of Section II" as well as "Clause 4.2.1 of Section II" of the Code. "The withdrawal of the advertisement must be completed within the deadlines stipulated by Clause 15.3 of the Procedural Guide."
In its ruling on Rehema, it does admit that the sanctions listed will have no material effect "as enforcement will be nearly impossible" [try completely impossible]. It has since issued an Ad Alert on both the doctor and the prof to its members. Should either book time on a commercial radio station or buy a page in Leef - met Hart en Siel, ASA will indeed have the last laugh.
