ANC must stop interfering in jobs at Lenasia South Hospital

21 September 2015

The Gauteng Health Department needs to ensure that job appointments at the new Lenasia South Hospital are done fairly and without political bias.

Anger is boiling over in the local community about apparent political bias in appointing people to more than 30 new jobs created as a result of the conversion of the Lenasia South clinic into a hospital.

It is outrageous that ANC Ward Councillor Paul Molutsi has participated in job interviews as an “observer”.

He was forced to withdraw last week after DA activists objected, but the interview process has been compromised by this blatant political interference and needs to be redone.

Local DA Branch chairperson Vinay Choonie complained in May this year to the Human Rights Commission and the Public Protector, and the process was temporarily halted.

The DA has affidavits and eyewitnesses reports describing how some jobseekers were encouraged to leave the long queue and given preferential treatment by what appeared to be clinic staff.

Gauteng Health MEC Qedani Mahlangu was alerted to this in May by DA councillor Martin Williams.

There is a protest today in Lenasia demanding that the whole application process start from scratch as it has been irredeemably compromised by previous bias.

I am asking questions in the Gauteng Legislature about this whole process.

Government jobs should be given on merit, not to political favourites as appears to be happening at the Lenasia South Hospital.

Statement issued by Jack Bloom MPL, DA Gauteng Shadow MEC for Health, 21 September 2015