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The Democratic Alliance (DA) is deeply concerned that Covid-19 funds are being used to bail out Sol Plaatje municipality. This, at a time when we are not only waiting to see what the extent and severity of the third wave will be, but we are also waiting for the long outstanding vaccine rollout to occur.

During a press conference last week, the premier, Dr Zamani Saul, indicated that a portion of the half a billion rand, that provincial government has committed towards addressing service delivery issues in Sol Plaatje municipality, has been solicited from funds intended to fight the pandemic. The DA is taken aback by this revelation.

The health system in the Northern Cape is in deep trouble. It has chronic challenges paying the overtime of hardworking health professionals, it finds itself out of stock of medicines because the suppliers haven’t yet been paid, it has way too few nurses to fully operationalise facilities, which could help in ensuring that Covid-19 and other health conditions are simultaneously prioritised. Yet, money meant to assist the ailing health department attend to the additional burden of Covid-19, is according to the premier, not required.

This is an insult to all health workers, who compromise their immune systems because they are overworked due to staff shortages, who put their lives at risk because of poor security at facilities and who put their lives on the line with the usage of inferior quality personal protective equipment (PPEs). Can the premier honestly look these health workers in the eye and tell them that the health department doesn’t need the Covid-19 funds that it is instead proudly using to fill up potholes?

What then of the people of the Northern Cape who lost loved ones and lost jobs because of this pandemic, and who are anxiously waiting for vaccines to be rolled out, to minimise the further threat of this virus. In February of this year, the out-of-pocket health department had no idea how they were going to fund the vaccine rollout, which itself requires additional staff, additional PPEs, not to mention travel and accommodation payments and specialised fridges in which to store the vaccines. Does the premier really have so much faith in the bankrupt health department to budget for the vaccination rollout programme, that he will rather take a chance on Sol Plaatje?

We do not deny that Sol Plaatje is broken and in urgent need of repair. However, we are of the view that it is highly irresponsible of the premier to use money intended to save lives and livelihoods, to rather save Sol Plaatje. Or is it perhaps to save the image of the ANC ahead of the local government elections?

The DA will be submitting written questions to the national minister of health, asking whether he is aware of the Northern Cape government’s decision to direct Covid-19 funds towards an ailing municipality.

Ensuring a quick and effective vaccine rollout, to save lives and livelihoods, must be priority number one.

Issued by DA