DA urges SAHRC to investigate ‘Scooter Project’

The Democratic Alliance (DA) says it has reported the Eastern Cape health department to the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) to investigate the suitability of the ‘Scooter Project’.

Minister of Health Zweli Mkhize announced the launch of the emergency medical services (EMS) ‘Scooter Project’ on 12 June during his visit in Eastern Cape, which was launched to transport patients or deliver medication in rural communities in the province amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

DA MP Siviwe Gwarube said in a statement on Friday that the DA was in contention that the motorbikes are in contravention of section 27 of the Constitution, which guarantees access to healthcare and prohibits the government from denying anyone access to emergency medical care.

“These motorbikes are not suitable for patient transport anywhere in the country, let alone in the rural Eastern Cape with little to no road infrastructure.

“This intervention by the Eastern Cape is denying access to healthcare and emergency care to those who will be confined to using this transport system. In addition, this mode of transport for the sick, needy and the elderly is unsafe and is undignified.

“Based on these reasons, this R10 million programme that the Eastern Cape government seeks to roll out across the province is in direct contravention of our constitutionally-protected basic human rights and makes a mockery of the those who will be forced to use this mode of transport,” he said.

Gwarube said it was critical that the SAHRC launches an investigation immediately before the programme was implemented in the province.

“Furthermore, I have submitted a series of parliamentary questions to the Health Minister, Dr Zweli Mkhize, to confirm whether this mode of transport meets the basic norms and standards for patient transport; was this work done by the national health department along with the Eastern Cape health department and what the specifications were for this project.

“Just yesterday, Dr Mkhize has defended these motorbikes by claiming that people have to resort to using wheelbarrows in rural areas as if that is ever an excuse to use subpar medical interventions because people have repeatedly been let down by the South African government,” he added.

He further said SAHRC should expedite the investigation to ensure no lives were endangered in the province due to the use of “glorified wheelbarrows” as a life-saving mechanism.

Meanwhile, Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader, Julius Malema also opposed the scooter project and urged people in the Eastern Cape to remove the motorbikes from the streets, SowetanLIVE reported.

Speaking on Youth Day, 16 June, Malema argued that the motorbikes showed that the government disregarded the dignity of black people.

“We want to tell the government of the Eastern Cape …‘take those scooters and give them to municipalities, they can use them to deliver mails and bills’ because any of those if they are found in the village claiming that they are coming to fetch a sick person, fighters you know what to do with such a behaviour. I do not want to tell you now, I will tell you in our space and privacy,” Malema said.

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