Gauteng Health MEC: Maxeke hospital will open ‘as soon as humanly possible’
Gauteng Health MEC Nomathemba Mokgethi says government is doing
everything in its power to ensure the Charlotte Maxeke Academic Hospital
reopens its doors “as soon as humanly possible”.
In April last year, the hospital was closed after parts of the building were gutted by a fire.
The provincial government has allocated about R100 million to the hospital for refurbishments during last week’s budget.
There has been growing public calls and concerns about the pace of the work.
“MEC Mokgethi acknowledged that public calls and . . . (they) are not without merit given the impact of a partially functioning Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital on other nearby facilities such as Helen Joseph Hospital and Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital,” says department spokesperson Kwara Kekana.
ALSO READ: AgriSA joins calls for govt to suspend fuel levies amid spike in prices
Kekana says the department experienced a few setbacks during the rebuilding process.
“The work to complete the casualty section suffered a setback recently due to theft of copper piping, electrical wiring and circuit breakers from the works and disruption of the site by the local community.”
Security at the site has since been beefed up with restrictions to the affected areas.
