She delivered her maiden budget speech at the Phuthaditjhaba Multi-Purpose Centre in Qwaqwa in the Maluti-A-Phofung municipal district.

The Freedom Front Plus (FF Plus) and Democratic Alliance (DA) have criticised the multimillion-rand budget for its apparent shortcomings. The opposition is of the view that the speech failed to address the most critical areas that need attention at many health facilities in the province.

DA Member of the Provincial Legislature (MPL) Mariëtte Pittaway says MEC Leeto failed to address the backlog in orthopaedic surgeries.

"People are dying waiting for surgery. The MEC made a promise in her speech that infrastructure will get priority, but when I go to Boitumelo Hospital in Kroonstad, which I visit regularly like all other hospitals, the revitalisation programme was supposed to be completed by 2012; we are now in 2023, and it's still not complete.

"And when I queried it, that was when the sign for construction in progress went up, but nothing happened," said Pittaway.

The FF Plus MPL Armand Cloete said MEC Leeto said nothing about what he terms as "the devastating" impact the National Education, Health and Allied Workers Union (Nehawu) wage strike had on the healthcare system.

"I reminded the House that according to the Labour Law, nurses, doctors, and anyone working as critical personnel, are not allowed to strike. We heard very little about this and the department is not so innocent. This is not just about wage bill increases; it's also about the horrible situations and circumstances these people work in, and that's something the department needs to look into," Cloete said.

On Tuesday, MEC Leeto vowed to deal with non-performing and incompetent contractors or service providers.

She said she was not going to tolerate the appointment of incompetent contractors who did not complete the projects on time, as it negatively impacted the image of the department.

"Boitumelo Hospital, as you are saying, has been under construction for years. Because I am new in the department, I'm going to request a report because Boitumelo has been in the spotlight and the report I got says that upgrades were being done there, but we will have to look at management (of the project)."

ALSO READ: Health MEC vows to deal with incompetent contractors – VIDEO

The total budget allocated by the Free State Department of Health for infrastructure projects, new and continuing, for the financial year 2023/24 amounts to a total of R704,639 million.

OFM News