Chairperson, on Thursday night, we watched with great anticipation as the President delivered his state of the nation address. In truth, the speech was big on dreamy rhetoric and thin on much needed details.
More concerning was the absence of a plan to provide quality health care for our people. Each and every one of us in this House is familiar with the deep despair and helplessness which comes with sickness. It is at those times that nothing is scarier than being dependent on a health system that has been neglected for decades and has been systematically unravelling at the seams. The reality is that millions of South Africans are too familiar with that scenario.
Several weeks ago, I too, was reminded of the importance of the work that we do here. I lost a family member who was still in his prime following a short illness. His death impressed upon me why we need to improve the quality of health care in this country, not just for our family members, but for the people who rely of this government' service.
The millions of South Africans who have no other choice, but to surrender themselves to an overburdened health system are the people that the DA is here fighting for. [Applause.]
Mr President, your address on the health system of our country was simply not good enough. There are urgent commitments that South Africa requires from you when you respond to this debate tomorrow; firstly, fixing the broken health system, this requires an honest reflection about what has gone wrong in the health sector of our country.
The DA unequivocally supports universal health care for our people. However, in doing so, we cannot destroy the economy; risk a brain drain and rampant corruption. The Presidential Health Summit held last year, was simply an admission that there are deep inequalities when it comes to access to health. This is a known fact. The gap between those who have health coverage and those who rely on the public health sector are huge. However, this is because of decades of neglect and poor policies by the ANC government.
The rural Eastern Cape where I come from is visual representation of failure by this government. Nothing works. Dedicated and hardworking health care professionals are thrown into areas that have not seen delivery in decades. These are men
and women who want to serve, but are hamstrung by the unavailability of medicine, crumbling infrastructure and no medical equipment.
In KZN, thousands of patients died due to the oncology crisis which the ANC's nominated chairperson for the health committee, Dr Sibongiseni Dhlomo has now presided over.
Yes, the rising cost of private health care needs to be addressed and this can be regulated by using existing legislation such as the Medical Schemes Act 131 of 1998. However, the fact that pregnant women who use our health facilities are taking a gamble with their lives is something that the ANC government needs to accept responsibility for.
The fact that the elderly are tied to chairs waiting for medical care as was done in Mamelodi Hospital is entirely on this government. The fact that there is a lack of access to reproductive health care leads to young women getting backstreet abortions and children under five die annually due to poor
living conditions is an absolute indictment on this executive. [Applause.]
The National Health Insurance, NHI, as it stands, premises its entire existence on the need to level the field of access. It does not seek to improve the existing health facilities and levels of care. The NHI, in its current form will nationalise health care. We cannot allow a piece of legislation that has neither been costed nor effectively planned for destroy the little that we have.
The DA will oppose this Bill until it places the patient at the centre of its conception. [Applause.] We trust that the newly appointment Minister Mkhize will begin working on the basics. Some of our health care facilities are death zones.
IsiXhosa:
Abantu bethu bangena ezibhedlele bekhangela uncedo baphume ngeebhokisi. Eyona nto abantu abayifunayo kukungena ezibhedlele naseziklinikhi bafumane abongikazi noogqirha aboneleyo.
Abantu bakhangela urhulumente oza kuqinisekisa ukuba abantu abadala abafiki ngonyezi, balinde imini yonke baphinde bahambe bengancedwanga. [Kwaqhwatywa.] Mphathiswa nawe Mongameli anisokuze nivume intsapho zenu ziye kufumana uncedo kwizibhedle zethu kuba niyayazi imeko ezikuyo. Nibayekela njani abantu abasonyulileyo baphatheke ngoluhlobo?
English:
The President should use the opportunity tomorrow to assure the families of the loved ones of the Life Esidimeni tragedy that they will receive their compensation.
In addition, the President should ensure that the people who were responsible for the death of hundreds of mentally ill patients are held to account. Those who are guilty, both politicians and officials must be fired. They must be held criminally liable for having played "upuca" with the lives of our people. [Applause.]
The fact that Qedani Mahlangu is still embraced by the ANC and enjoys a leadership position is an indictment on you and your organisation, Sir.
The problems that we face as a country are not insurmountable. They can be resolved, but they require us to go back to the basics of good governance like the DA has in the Western Cape. When we come to this House to talk about the success stories of the DA, we are not bragging, but we are bringing solutions to the table. [Applause.]
In the Western Cape, we serve over 75% of the province's population who rely on public health care, but the outcomes are objectively better than any other province in the country. [Applause.] This is easily confirmed by the fact that we have the highest life expectancy for both men and women. This is because we have used a combination of innovation, political will and commitment to our people.
Most critically, since the DA took back Western Cape in 2009, we have invested over R6 billion on infrastructure and maintenance.
This means, we have built new clinics, new hospitals and ambulance stations and upgraded existing ones. This investment has drastically improved patient experience.
To manage waiting times and critical medication stock outs, we have invested in two major innovations; we have a central depot that manages the stock outs. That is why when the national Department of Health bungled the tender for antiretroviral, ARVs, a couple of weeks ago, this province managed the crisis better because of effective planning. [Applause.]
In addition, the Western Cape is the only province which is at the advanced stage of digitalising patient records.
IsiXhosa:
Kweli iphondo abantu abasayikulinda imini yonke kuba iifolda zabo zingafumaneki.
English:
The critical point to be made here is that, if the DA can do this in the Western Cape, it is possible to do it across the country. [Interjections.]
We do not need any more summits, symposiums or imbizos; we need this government to do its work. Failing which, we will hold you accountable. We will ring the bell on corruption. We will demand better health care for our people. We will fight against the disastrous NHI and put forward a credible plan. The DA will never neglect our constitutional obligations. The people of this country deserve nothing less. [Time Expired.]