Mon séjour en Afrique du Sud (Cape Town)

Major military hospital on critical list, MPs find Parliamentary Editor CAPE TOWN The state hospital that would care for President Thabo Mbeki should he fall ill is falling apart at the seams, a parliamentary oversight visit to No 1 Military Hospital has found.

The hospital, situated in the Thabo Tshwane military enclave, provides medical care to the president and deputy president, former presidents, former deputy presidents and foreign dignitaries in addition to members of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) and their families.

Parliament's defence committee found in August this year that there were major cracks in the walls and holes in the ceilings, and that paint was peeling off the walls and the ceilings. Also, ceilings and window panes were missing, bathrooms did not have taps and tiles, sleeping quarters did not have curtains, cupboards or chairs and sometimes were also missing tables.

This poor state of the facilities impacted negatively on morale and therefore the performance of the personnel (patients, staff and learners), Parliament's study found.

In addition, the defence committee's draft report says some of the maintenance backlog represented occupational health and safety risks which are impediments to training, accommodation and the provisioning of proper medical care to patients in the case of No 1 Military Hospital.

The report is still considered to be a draft and has to be endorsed by the full defence committee before being sent to the National Assembly.

Parliament has promised its commitment to oversight will increase as its legislative burden slows down. Many of its committees have been visiting institutions in their fields to see how they are being run.

The committee recommended institutions such as No 1 Military Hospital be funded in a manner which would allow it to maintain its image and output as an international service provider.

The hospital, designated to treat United Nations peacekeepers as well, has resorted to accommodating foreign students and visiting defence force members in private guest houses to save the image of the SANDF.