MDC Statement on suspension of surgeries at Harare Central hospital

The suspension of surgeries at Harare central Hospital is a symptom of a ZANU PF government that is overstretched, unaccountable and overwhelmingly failing the suffering citizens of Zimbabwe. We view this latest disaster as a death sentence to citizens desperately in need of medical attention and unlike the First family and ZANU PF chefs cannot afford the privilege of seeking treatment in Singapore, India or South Africa or private hospitals locally.

The suspension of surgeries at Harare hospital due to lack of drugs is a is a reflection of the sorry state of public hospitals countrywide and a glaring consequence of the misplaced priorities of government, which thinks it is perfectly right to sustain President Mugabe's merry go round trips around the world which gobble up millions of dollars while the health sector literally shuts down. It is clear that government's only concern now is President Mugabe's happiness and not the well -being of its suffering millions.

This intolerable dereliction of government's moral duty to its citizens cannot be allowed to go on a second longer. As MDC we demand the immediate resignation of the Minister of Health and Child Welfare and the dissolving of the entire Health Ministry. For too long the suffering population has been programmed into accepting that medical care is a privilege rather than a right, resulting in many unnecessary deaths. The government is morally obligated to do all within its means to ensure that basic medical care is accessible and affordable to all its citizens.