MyJHB

Stuff from Johannesburg

R380 000 a day for empty beds at Nasrec field hospital

Dear Johannesburg

Only 34 patients have been admitted to the 1000-bed NASREC field hospital so far this month, but R380 a day is being paid for each empty bed.

Acting Gauteng Health MEC Jacob Mamabolo revealed this yesterday in an oral reply to my questions at a virtual sitting of the Gauteng Legislature.

According to Mamabolo, there is a fixed cost per bed of R380 a day, and R390 a day for each patient.

This means that about R380 000 a day is being paid for 1000 empty beds in terms of a 6 month contract with the Johannesburg Expo Centre. The contract expires on 31 Januarynext year so the last three months of the contract is likely to cost more than R32 million.

This is extremely wasteful and cannot be justified even if we had a second wave of COVID-19 infections as fewer than 10% of the NASREC beds were used at the peak of the epidemic in July.

It would be far better to contract with private hospitals to take public patients if state hospitals ever overflow with COVID-19 patients.

I have requested the Auditor-General to investigate the NASREC contract which I suspect contravenes good practice and is possibly corrupt.

Regards

Jack Bloom MPL
DA Gauteng Shadow MEC for Health

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The Socio-Political Crucible of Soweto

You cannot understand Johannesburg without understanding Soweto (an acronym for South Western Townships). Originally established as a “labor dormitory” to house black miners away from the white city center, Soweto grew into a sprawling metropolis of over 1.3 million people and became the epicenter of the struggle against Apartheid.

The township is home to Vilakazi Street, the only street in the world to have been home to two Nobel Peace Prize winners: Nelson Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu. It was also the site of the 1976 Soweto Uprising, when thousands of students protested against the forced use of Afrikaans in schools. The police response and the subsequent death of 13-year-old Hector Pieterson catalyzed international condemnation of the Apartheid regime. Today, Soweto is a vibrant cultural hub, blending historical landmarks like the Orlando Towers (now used for bungee jumping) with a booming tourism industry and a sophisticated middle class. It represents the city’s resilience—a place born from segregation that transformed into a symbol of liberation and modern South African identity.