Closure of Free State clinics and morgues shows maintenance failures

Show Voice Options Free State Health MEC Viceroy Mahlatsi admits that staff in his department have failed to ensure that the infrastructure at health facilities is well maintained. Mahlatsi says the recent closure of clinics and state morgues in the province by inspectors from the Department of Labour and Employment is evidence of the neglect. “I personally understand the labour inspectors who are closing down facilities. I have ordered internal inspections of all facilities so we know what we should do. It’s disappointing that people fail to get services because facilities have been closed due to unsafe conditions,” he says. This week, Mahlatsi embarked on inspections of his own in Allinridge, in the north-west of the Free State, where he found a clinic closed by the labour and employment department following safety concerns. Mahlatsi adds that it is embarrassing to have a clinic closed since April, causing service breakdown in the farming and mining community.