Midoroni clinic project nears completion

Kutama residents will soon have the new Midoroni clinic staffed and open for service, said the spokesperson for the Department of Health, Ms Adele van der Linde on Tuesday.

The multi-million-rand project was completed last year but couldn’t be officially opened due to financial constraints. “We will activate (the clinic) this new financial year as staff were needed at the already completed clinic and could not be appointed due to financial constraints,” said Van der Linde.

In November 2012, residents expressed their anger and frustration at the lack of progress with the construction of two clinic buildings, namely those at Midoroni and Kutama. The projects were supposed to be finished around mid-2012.

While there is seemingly good news about the expected staffing and opening of the Midoroni clinic, the department is yet to find a contractor to resume the work which the previous contractor abandoned at the site of the Kutama clinic. The R9.4 million project at the Kutama clinic was awarded for building the clinic and upgrading the staff housing complex. The contractor failed to complete the project by the set date and was given an extension of 81 days, pushing the project completion date to 2 March 2012.

Van der Linde confirmed that project will continue and the renovations will be completed as soon as a new contractor has been appointed.

The chairperson of the Kutama clinic committee, Ms Mokgadi Ralidzhivha, welcomed the news. “People travel many kilometres to reach other, distant clinics when they feel that the services they are getting at the Kutama clinic are not enough. Even our nurses are working under difficult conditions, due to unfinished blocks at the clinic.”

The Kutama Traditional Council’s spokesperson, Vhamusanda Vho-Ntanganedzeni Kutama, said the communities had been looking forward to the completion and opening of both clinics.

“We are very glad after the government built us the two clinics and further urge the Department of Health to complete the two projects, so that the residents can get medical assistance at these clinic,” Vho-Kutama said.

News - Date: 11 April 2014

Tshifhiwa Mukwevho

Tshifhiwa Given Mukwevho was born in 1984 in Madombidzha village, not far from Louis Trichardt in the Limpopo Province. After submitting articles for roughly a year for Limpopo Mirror's youth supplement, Makoya, he started writing for the main newspaper. He is a prolific writer who published his first book, titled A Traumatic Revenge in 2011. It focusses on life on the street and how to survive amidst poverty. His second book titled The Violent Gestures of Life was published in 2014.

Email: [email protected]