EFF uses strong-arm tactics to disperse Dudula members at hospital

On Thursday, at Kalafong Hospital the day began with heated confrontations between the EFF and Operation Dudula members.

The EFF approached the police, who were monitoring the situation outside the hospital, and questioned why they were not taking action against the Dudula group singing and chanting outside the hospital.

A few hours later there were flying stones, bottles, an exchange of slaps and kicks and sjamboking as the two opposing groups fought and attacked each other.

Stun grenades and shots were fired as police tried to contain the situation.

While some were injured, one member of the EFF group was taken inside the police van.

The EFF members who had run for cover inside the hospital were removed by the police.

National health minister Joe Phaahla was inside the Pretoria hospital at the time, assessing the impact of sporadic protests preventing access to health services, led by the anti-migrant Dudula movement. 

The Dudula group continued to gather at the hospital despite a court interdict from the Pretoria high court.

It bars them from threatening, preventing and denying patients (deemed to be non-South African) and hospital employees from accessing the facility.

Phaahla said the activities are a violation of the SA Constitution, depriving people of their fundamental rights and are illegal.

We feel we must put a clear message to the SAPS which is now sleeping in the same bed with Dudula, because they have obtained a court interdict from the Gauteng division high court but they are still questioning whether the interdict is or legal.

—  EFF Gauteng spokesperson Philip Makwala

“I am aware that the current excitement and mobilisation by some groups such as Dudula is associated with erroneous interpretation of a video of comments made by MEC for health in Limpopo to a patient at Bela Bela hospital. As already commented by my colleague, deputy minister Dhlomo, while I was out of the country, we must distinguish two issues out of the video.”

“The first issue is that we agree with those who are saying it was inappropriate for the MEC to direct her concerns to a patient who was in a vulnerable state and a victim of circumstances. The second issue is that the substantive matters the MEC was raising in terms of the high demand and pressure on our health services beyond what is planned for, puts additional pressure on a system which is already fragile,” said Phaahla.

“The question of how to deal with these additional pressures on our national services from people from our neighbouring countries, which happens in an unplanned, unpredictable and unfunded manner is not new and has been the subject of discussion at various policy meetings,” he added. 

Phaahla called on the leaders of Dudula to stop their actions.

“It’s not your responsibility, leave it to the people who have been elected, who have got the constitutional responsibility to manage that situation. We hope that the leaders will see the logic that what they are trying to do is not going to be helpful and stay away from that,” he said.

The EFF in Gauteng said the minister of health had failed the people.

“Particularly economic immigrants and asylum seekers in SA. The minister, because he is a populist minister, is here because the EFF came here to confront a certain group of people yesterday, so there is nothing tangible that the minister is going to provide to the people of Kalafong and immigrants in SA,” said EFF Gauteng spokesperson Philip Makwala.

Makwala also said the police were failing to do their work.

“We feel we must put a clear message to the SAPS which is now sleeping in the same bed with Dudula, because they have obtained a court interdict from the Gauteng division high court, but they are still questioning whether the interdict is legal. It’s a problem for the EFF because SAPS is promoting black on black violence. We need to fight with these people because they are only here to watch us, they are not doing anything, they are not calling orders, they are not dispersing the group of protesters as they are instructed by the court interdict,” he said.

Bongani Banda, regional chairperson of Denosa in Tshwane said they were extremely disappointed with Dudula’s actions.

“We are quite concerned with the violence that is being brought by theEFF and we have been informed that the CEO has had to call the EFF to come and intervene — we do not support this conduct,” he said.

Banda said staff shortages had not been addressed and were the main cause of problems at the Kalafong hospital.

A nurse, who did not want to be named fearing victimisation, said they were dealing with many demoralising issues at the hospital which get blamed on them.

The nurse, whostarted working in 2016, said the government is failing health workers.

The nurse disputed the minister’s comment, stating there are no statistics that support Dudula’s notion.

“We have an admission system — when they admit a patient, there is a section where they want to know whether you are a South African or from outside. So why is the minister saying there is no statistics, even when we record our deliveries we also note the nationality of the patient? Why is he saying there is no statistics? I feel that our government is failing us, the staff is demoralised, and coming to work is a hassle,” said the nurse.

Mpho Mabala, a Dudula member and member of the Saulsville, Atteridgeville lotus concerned residents association (SALCRA) told TimesLIVE Premium he was going to open a case of assault against the EFF after he was slapped on Wednesday.

“I was looking the other way, when I turned around, I was klapped. We were not fighting with them. They hit me. I have bruises,” he said touching his bruised face and chapped lip.

The man, with a J88 form in his hand, said the community members have been complaining about illegal immigrants.

“They have been complaining. That is why Dudula came here, even yesterday, the same staff here were complaining about what is happening in Atteridgeville. Even in our clinics, they don’t treat people accordingly. They give preference to people from outside countries. In Atteridgeville people are fighting for their own rights,but we are denied our own rights,” He said.

When TimesLIVE Premium left the Atteridgeville police station late on Thursday,  Operation Dudula members had arrived to open cases against the EFF party.

Thabo Ngayo, national coordinator of Operation Dudula, said they have more than four people that were injured on Thursday during the clash

“We are here to open a case against those members, or the EFF must account for all the injuries that occurred to our people. We were told that our members at Rosettenville are at the hospital with the same EFF that attacked our people while they were picketing peacefully. We are going to open a case for the entire movement because those members represent the EFF,” he said.