Minister of Health must provide clarity regarding the terrible state of hospitals

25 June 2019

The Minister of Health, Zweli Mkhize, must indicate how he plans to turn around his Department and improve the terrible conditions in state hospitals as well as how he will save the Department of Health from sinking ever deeper into the pit of corruption and poor service delivery.

The FF Plus also wants to know what the Minister is going to do to hold officials who do not care for patients as they ought to or who even assault patients in hospitals accountable. Recently, there were numerous reports in the media about a patient who was chained to a chair in the Mamelodi Hospital in Pretoria.

The FF Plus has also been busy conducting various investigations into deaths in state hospitals and the strange circumstances under which these deaths occurred. The FF Plus plans to give the information gleaned from their investigations to the new Minister so that a thorough high-level investigation can be done.

The FF Plus will also ensure that the corrupt officials who were responsible for the collapse of the Gauteng Health Department are duly prosecuted. One of them is a very senior former ANC official in the Gauteng Legislature who apparently embezzled approximately R1,2 billion.

The FF Plus has in its possession a report by the Special Investigating Unit that indicates that the person must be charged with theft and corruption. The Gauteng Premier, David Makhura, has thus far not taken any action against the person.

Qedani Mahlangu, the former MEC for Health in Gauteng, who was responsible for the Esidimeni tragedy must also be duly prosecuted. After the tragedy, Mahlangu tried to flee to Britain, but was brought back to South Africa to testify in the Esidimeni trial. Not one of the two persons mentioned above have been charged or prosecuted.

South Africa's state hospitals are in a terrible state and service delivery is extremely poor. That places immense pressure on nursing staff and doctors who have to get by with inadequate equipment and medicine.

The FF Plus will not back down until the problems in our country's hospitals and Health Department are addressed and rectified in the interest of all South African citizens.

Issued by Philip van Staden, FF Plus Member of Parliament, 25 June 2019