Despite last week’s High Court order compelling the City of Harare to open all its forty-two council poly clinics within seven days, the local authority is yet to comply with the ruling.
Chief Justice Mushore on the 7th of October 2020 ordered Harare City Council to open all its polyclinics in the next seven days after the clinics had been closed due to inadequate medical resources to sustain operations.
Combined Harare Residents Association (CHRA) has made a High Court application putting pressure on Harare to re-open its clinics.
Acting Health Director, Dr. Kudzai Masunda said only eight clinics are operational with the others yet to open due to an industrial action by the employees.
“As council we still have only eight clinics which are operational and we being affected by industrial action by council nurses and some of them are resigning”
According to CHRA Information Department, Mbare Matapi, Mbare Hostels, Marlborough, Warren Park and Sunningdale clinics are completely closed and a few namely Tafara, Mabvuku, Mufakose and Highfields and Dzivarasekwa clinics are open but not operational.
“The council clinic gates are opening but there is no one to attend to patients, we are stuck and we do not know where to go to access medication”, said CHRA Welfare chairperson Ms. Fatima Madamombe in Dzivarasekwa.
Residents have however castigated Harare City Council for failing to adequately remunerate its medical employees at a time council has often issued hefty salaries to top executives at the expense of service provision.
The local authority has struggled to provide service delivery in the city resulting in the dilapidation of its healthcare infrastructure.
