Gugulethu protesters demand update on new hospital

Last week, community members in Gugulethu, Cape Town picketed in the area, demanding timeframes for when construction of the new hospital would start. Photo: Sandiso Phaliso

• Gugulethu residents took to the streets last week to demand answers from the Western Cape health department about a new hospital planned for the area.
• In December the City of Cape Town agreed to transfer the ownership of a sports field in Gugulethu to the provincial government for the new hospital.
• However, In July we reported that some community members and sports clubs opposed the decision, saying that clubs and dozens of schools used the field weekly.
• There hasn’t been progress or feedback from the department since then.
• The department said it was negotiating with the tenants of the sports field before proceeding.

Scores of Gugulethu residents took to the streets to demand answers from the Western Cape Health and Wellness Department over plans to build a new hospital in the area.

In July we reported that some community members and sports clubs opposed a decision by the City of Cape Town to transfer a sports field to the provincial government for a hospital. The Gugulethu Sports and Development Trust said it used the field on weekends and had a month-to-month lease with the City, and about 22 schools also held their inter-schools matches there.

The Movement for Change and Social Justice, an alliance of health, safety and social service organisations, had been advocating since 2016 for a district hospital with a trauma unit to be built in Gugulethu by 2026.

The marchers said they wanted to know when construction of the hospital would start. They said the KTC Community Health Centre, the only one in the area, was in a state of despair with poor service.

They said KTC, built in the 1960s, can no longer meet the needs of the growing population of Gugulethu and of dense surrounding areas such as Philippi, Lusaka, and the informal settlements of Barcelona, Europe and Kanana.

They say KTC is often dirty, does not have sufficient medication or parking, and is not wheelchair-friendly.

Gugulethu resident and activist Thozamile Mtiki has Fibrous dysplasia and uses a wheelchair to get around. He said, “It is impossible to enter the [KTC] clinic without help. It’s a nightmare for people living with disabilities because there are no ramps.”

Mtiki said he has raised this issue over many years with staff but to no avail.

Mandla Majola from the Movement for Change and Social Justice told GroundUp their attempts to talk to the health department had been unsuccessful.

Majola said they receive dozens of complaints daily about the bad conditions at KTC. “We are firm and clear that we need a hospital but it must not come at the expense of destroying a sports field,” he said.

Monique Johnstone, health department spokesperson, said “no formal engagements have taken place as we are waiting for confirmation to use the identified site”. The Department of Infrastructure, as the custodian of all Western Cape Government land, is still engaging with the City about the site, she said, promising to keep “all stakeholders” informed.

The new facility is expected to include an obstetric unit as well as a well-equipped maternity ward, she said.

Western Cape Department of Infrastructure spokesperson Jandre Bakker said, “The process has not been finalised as the City is still negotiating with the tenants of the land so that the Western Cape Government can receive vacant occupation once purchased.”

Mayoral Committee Member for Economic Growth James Vos said in December 2022, Council had agreed to transfer the land for the new hospital. “While these processes are time-consuming, the transfer process is underway,” said Vos.

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