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The Democratic Alliance (DA) has received reliable information indicating that the Gauteng Department of Health Acting Head of Department (HOD), Dr Darion Barclay, could be replaced from 1 October 2026. If true, this raises a serious question: is Premier Panyaza Lesufi genuinely seeking to stabilise the Gauteng Health Department or merely rearranging deck chairs on a department sinking under the weight of persistent leadership, staffing, procurement, and service-delivery challenges?

Regardless of who occupies the HOD position, Gauteng Health remains plagued by leadership instability, vacancies, procurement failures and medicine shortages. Replacing another senior official without fixing these systemic problems will not improve patient care.

Since MEC Faith Mazibuko's appointment, Dr Barclay has appeared regularly before the Gauteng Portfolio Committee on Health and Wellness and, in many respects, seemed to steer the department in the right direction. However, his complete centralisation of procurement decisions has dramatically slowed the acquisition of essentials like cleaning materials, linen, medical equipment, and food.

Challenges such as extreme austerity measures, a staff hiring moratorium, restrictions on equipment procurement, medicine shortages and stock-outs across the province, and unpaid overtime are being laid squarely at Dr Barclay’s door, leading to speculation that his time in the hot seat is up.

The DA has consistently called for the lifting of the staff hiring moratorium, increasing transparency in procurement processes, and stabilising medical supplies. Despite this, vacancies remain unfilled, and staff non-payment and medicine shortages persist, harming patient care, staff morale, and the overall patient experience.

A DA-led Gauteng would never allow internal strife and poor leadership to compromise patient care. We would stabilise the health department by appointing qualified leadership, filling key vacancies, ensuring transparent procurement, and delivering essential medicines on time to ensure quality healthcare services for all Gauteng residents.

Issued by DA Gauteng Spokesperson for Health Madeleine Hicklin