DA hammers ANC over healthcare and schools

Three days ahead of the state of the nation speech, DA parliamentary leader Lindiwe Mazibuko slammed the ANC for the dire state of healthcare and schools.

Speaking at the Press Club in Cape Town yesterday, Mazibuko described the health system as dysfunctional and said that though the Education Department received the highest proportion of GDP, South Africa's education system "is among the worst in the world".

She predicted that the proposed national health insurance scheme would fail because state hospitals were badly managed and there was a lack of political will to tackle the skills shortage.

"The reality is this: in state hospitals today, which are available and open to all citizens, hospitals are badly managed by unqualified CEOs, and striking annually breaks down the chain of accountability and work.

"We have doctors and nurses working under the most appalling conditions with an excessive number of patients and no resources to back them up."

Mazibuko said clinics in rural areas lacked basics such as pain killers and syringes, and untenable working conditions forced doctors and nurses to leave the country.

She attributed the problems in hospitals and schools to a lack of commitment and political will.

She said a national health insurance scheme would not solve SA's health problems but would burden the taxpayer further.

Mazibuko plans to tell President Jacob Zuma about her party's proposals for dealing with the problems in education, which include having principals and teachers sign performance agreements.