DA commends KZN health MEC
2009-07-16 20:04
Durban - The DA on Thursday commended KwaZulu-Natal health MEC Sibongiseni Dhlomo for sacking the Pietermaritzburg health district manager.
"The DA has welcomed reports that KwaZulu-Natal health MEC, Dr Sibongiseni Dhlomo, has sacked district medical manager, May Zuma-Mkhonza, after she failed to manage the issue of ARV [antiretroviral] roll-out at Edendale Hospital," said the Democratic Alliance's John Steenhuisen in a statement.
Zuma-Mkhonza, a high ranking Pietermaritzburg district health manager, was given the boot this week following a chronic shortage of antiretroviral drugs at Edendale Hospital which put lives at risk.
"We commend the MEC for taking a tough stance but this is just the start.
"There are hundreds of inefficient and corrupt officials within the province's medical system and he needs to root them out one by one," said Steenhuisen.
Edendale Hospital has 11 000 patients on the ARV drug treatment programme while more had been turned away because the hospital could not cope with the high number of people wanting the medicines.
The hospital had the biggest ARV drugs programme in the country.
Dhlomo sacked Zuma-Mkhonza because he was not happy that she failed to allow NGOs to help the department deal with the growing number of people wanting to enrol in the HIV treatment programme.
- SAPA
