ANC to call on national minister to resolve dispute 

The Western Cape ANC will call on the national minister of health Dr. Aaron Motsoaledi to urgently intervene in a dispute between the community and Western Cape health MEC Theuns Botha over broken promises if these are not met.

This follows on a disagreement between the community in Khayelitsha on employing local workers in lower level posts at the new Khayelitsha hospital.

The quarrel has led to a deadlock between the management and community on the eve of the transfer of the first sixty patients to Khayelitsha this weekend ahead of the opening of the hospital, says the ANC.

Community leaders negotiated with MEC Botha as claims he promised to employ as many as possible local people to work in areas such as cleaning, catering, washing and security. Most of these tasks were further outsourced and given to contractors.

These were empty promises and management or the contractors are either unaware of the MEC's undertakings or ignore it. Instead of employing workers, they are moving people from other areas to do the job there. Only small numbers of local people had been appointed into vacant posts.

The community leaders are going to attempt another last round of negotiations with the Western Cape health department under the DA-led government. If this fails, the ANC will have no other choice but to call on the national minister to assist in solving the dispute.

Statement issued by Western Cape Provincial Secretary Songezo Mjongile, January 13 2012

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