EFF march to demand better health services

Burgersfort

The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) in Fetakgomo Tubatse Local Municipality (FTLM) has recently marched to Burgersfort Clinic, aiming to deliver a memorandum of grievances to Health Department MEC in Limpopo Dr Phophi Ramathuba.

However, the MEC was not available to receive the EFF memorandum during the day, citing that she had other government commitments.

The march was ignited by a number of complaints in relation to poor service delivery rendered by the public health institution, including among others, a recent incident where a heavily pregnant woman delivered a baby at the Burgersfort Clinic gates.

March Coordinator, Edward Phasha, said they were marching to raise a voice about the public’s right to health care service as a basic human right guaranteed by the South African Constitution, to all citizens and everyone who live in it.

“Section 27 of our constitution provides that everyone has the right to have access of health care service including reproductive health care service. No one to be refused emergency medical treatment. Although our constitution guaranteed this right, it is difficult for the people of Sekhukhune to exercise them because our clinics have a closing time while they have to open day and night for them to exercise their right to health care service,” he said.

According to Phasha, on this basic right, EFF Sekhukhune Region demand the smooth run of Sekhukhune health care facilities, which will come as a relief to the people.

Phasha indicated that part of the EFF demands included 24 hours clinics operations in Sekhukhune Region, all hospitals to have Human Resource (HR) Managers, Risk Assessment Managers, Financial Managers and Information and records managers with more kitchen staff and mortuary staff for the health facilities.

“We urge the health department senior officials that we are the beneficiaries of the government and that we deserve a healthy treatment and fair health care service from all public healthcare facilities. We are no longer slaves, this is a democratic country and we have been released from that bondage by the very same constitution,” he said.

Phasha said the memorandum was later forwarded to Ramathuba’s office and they have given the MEC 14 working days to respond to their grievances.