This information was revealed in written and oral replies to questions from the DA’s Shadow Health Minister, Jack Bloom, in the Gauteng Legislature this week. The Gauteng Health MEC, Nomathemba Mokgethi, acknowledged that there is no decision on the hospital’s future after the staff leave at the end of this month.
According to Mokgethi, only 147 Covid-19 patients have been treated at the hospital since it was partially opened in May last year. The hospital was supposed to have 181 ICU beds to treat Covid-19 patients, but only 56 ordinary beds are available. Not a single bed has been completed or is available for high care or ICU treatment. As the contractors have not finished their work, 125 beds have not yet been completed.
About R6 million has been spent on staff for this hospital, but they were appointed on Covid-19 contracts, which end on 31 March.
Mokgethi says her department is working on a strategy to retain the staff.
Despite this, only 34 patients have been treated in the hospital since the beginning of this year.
“There is no use pumping more money into this white elephant, which is likely to become a ghost hospital without staff or adequate medical equipment. The provincial government still does not own the building as the Anglo Ashanti mining company’s donation has not been finalised.
Meanwhile, the Special Investigating Unit (ICU) is probing corruption, with costs escalating from a renovation budget of R50 million to over R500 million. According to the SIU, the Gauteng Department of Infrastructure Development appointed six contractors irregularly, without a contract amount, bill of quantities or scope of work.
It is a major scandal that so much money was wasted on this hospital, far from major popu- lation centres, when existing hospitals need to be refurbished and are desperate for more staff and equipment to treat patients,” says Bloom.
