Tuesday, 08 July 2025

The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) conducted an oversight visit to the Khayelitsha District Hospital on 7 July 2025. The delegation was led by the National Chairperson and Chief Whip Honourable Nontando Nolutshungu, who was accompanied by the Honourable Rebecca Mohlala, Honourable Naledi Chirwa-Mpungose, and Honourable Sixolise Gcilishe. This visit was part of the EFF’s regular oversight visits to various government facilities throughout the country, as oversight is a critical and essential part of the work of EFF Members of Parliament.

The oversight visit was initiated in response to serious concerns raised by the Khayelitsha community about the state of service delivery at the hospital. Khayelitsha District Hospital serves one of the largest and most densely populated townships in the Western Cape, yet it grapples with significant obstacles that undermine its ability to meet the healthcare demands of the community. While the hospital is designed to accommodate 340 patients, it frequently admits over 400, excluding those in the trauma unit and triage stages. This overcrowding is driven by the hospital’s role as the sole healthcare facility serving Khayelitsha’s large and growing population.

During winter, the situation worsens, with patients sometimes forced to sleep on chairs modified into temporary beds due to insufficient bed space. Long waiting periods for transfers to tertiary institutions further exacerbate the strain. Despite these challenges, the EFF delegation was warmly received by the Acting CEO and Acting Deputy Director, who engaged transparently and provided comprehensive responses to all inquiries, while the trauma unit was clean, operational, and well-maintained.

During the oversight visit, a serious concern was raised about ongoing water-related challenges affecting the facility during Cape Town’s winter season. These issues stem from two distinct sources, both requiring urgent intervention. Firstly, the hospital experiences flooding due to the City of Cape Town’s failure to maintain the external stormwater drainage systems in the surrounding area. This municipal infrastructure is blocked and poorly maintained, causing stormwater to overflow into the hospital grounds during heavy rains. Despite a formal call for assistance last week, the City failed to respond, reflecting ongoing neglect by the Democratic Alliance-led (DA) municipality.

Secondly, the hospital is also battling roof leakages caused by structural deterioration of its roofing system. Damaged waterproofing and roof sheeting have resulted in internal water ingress, severely impacting operations. The Thuthuzela Care Centre, which supports survivors of sexual violence, is particularly affected and often floods during rain, compromising both patient dignity and service delivery. Despite multiple requests for intervention, the municipality has not acted, leaving the hospital vulnerable to water damage and operational disruptions.

This lack of action only confirms the fact that the DA does not care for communities such as Khayelitsha, prioritising the provision of adequate services to mainly white and affluent communities of Cape Town.  Areas like Khayelitsha, where the majority of Black and poor South Africans live, are totally neglected, a persistent pattern in all areas under DA governance.

The delegation also noted that, currently, one ward houses both male and female patients due to space constraints. Management described this as a temporary measure necessitated by the lack of ward space, compounded by delays in handing over the psychiatric unit. Once completed, the psychiatric unit will allow mental health patients to be relocated, freeing up space to separate general wards by gender. In the interim, security officers are stationed in the mixed ward to ensure patient safety. The EFF finds this arrangement unacceptable, as it undermines patient dignity and privacy, and demands urgent action to expedite the psychiatric unit’s completion.

The EFF also noted that key senior positions, including the CEO and Deputy Director, are held in an acting capacity, highlighting systemic issues, including budget constraints that prevent permanent appointments. The EFF calls for these vacancies to be filled promptly to ensure stability in the hospital’s management. Hospital management additionally raised serious concerns about chronic underfunding, which limits the facility’s ability to appoint permanent staff, maintain adequate bed capacity, and hire sufficient clinical and support personnel.

In particular, the Thuthuzela Forensic Care Centre, while clean and operational, remains severely constrained by its small size and limited child-friendly features. Although a few toys are available, the space lacks the necessary environment and resources to fully meet the needs of children.

It is important to note that this underfunding is directly linked to the neoliberal austerity budget approach of the Minister of Finance, which has slashed public spending on critical services like healthcare to meet fiscal targets imposed by international financial institutions. A significant portion of South Africa’s GDP is now diverted to servicing international debt owed to institutions such as the IMF and the World Bank, leaving public hospitals like Khayelitsha District Hospital starved of the resources needed to function effectively.

The EFF salutes the dedicated healthcare workers of Khayelitsha District Hospital, who persevere despite being failed by the state daily. However, we condemn the DA’s negligence, which directly impacts the hospital’s functionality and demand that they begin to pour the necessary funding into maintaining this hospital, adequately staffing it, fixing the broken infrastructure and consider building other healthcare centers to cater to the large and growing population of Khayelitsha. .

ISSUED BY ECONOMIC FREEDOM FIGHTERS

Sinawo Thambo (National Spokesperson) 072 629 7422

Thembi Msane (National Spokesperson) 061 467 8169

Andiswa Madikazi (Parliament Media Liason) 069 516 4924

Thato Lebyane (Media Inquiries) 078 563 1581