Days of protests in Indwe over hospital downgrade

Protesters from Indwe in the Eastern Cape blocked entry to the town with burning tyres and branches in a protest against a possible downgrade to their hospital. Photos: Nombulelo Damba-Hendrik

• Talk of downgrading Indwe Hospital in the Eastern Cape as part of a government programme has sparked three days of violent protests.
• Community leaders dispute official claims of low hospital admissions, arguing that the hospital serves five locations and 33 villages.
• Provincial health MEC Ntandokazi Capa addressed residents on Wednesday, saying no final decision has been made about the hospital’s status.

Police used stun grenades and rubber bullets on Wednesday to disperse protesters in Indwe, Eastern Cape. Residents have been protesting since Monday over the downgrading of the town’s hospital.

At least nine people were arrested for public violence and damaging infrastructure. Police spokesperson Namhla Mdleleni said they had been released on warning and would appear in court soon.

On Monday and Tuesday stones were thrown at police. Protesters blocked entry to the town with burning tyres, rubble and bushes. Schools and shops were closed. Before the three-day shutdown protest, there had been several peaceful pickets since last month.

Community leader Thabo Khethi said last week they had a meeting with officials from provincial health MEC Ntandokazi Capa’s office, who said the hospital would be downgraded.

Indwe Hospital, built in 1944, has been a provincial hospital since 2011. It has 20 beds in four wards, including one maternity ward.

Khethi says officials told him every month the hospital admits less than ten people.

He disputes this. “Indwe is a big community with five locations and 33 villages, with a 42,600 population. We need this hospital and it’s very strange to be told that the hospital data shows only less than ten people admitted a month,” he said.

Khethi said the department is renting the property from the great-granddaughter of the original owners for R128,000 a month.

Though the building looks promising outside, Khethi said some wards have roof leaks.

He said people are angry because they were promised in 2017 that R220-million would be spent on a new hospital for the town. Now, he says, the officials told them the money had been spent by the department to cover medical litigation cases.

Ayanda Khongolo, of Indwe Concerned Members, said from what they understood the hospital will be downgraded to a community health centre and only open at daytime.

He said most people who live in Indwe rely on social grants and already struggle to pay up to R150 in transport costs to visit the hospital. Hiring a car to get to Elliot Hospital, 56km away, could cost ten times that.

Patients were moved from Indwe to Elliot Hospital on Sunday night, ostensibly because of the protest.

On Wednesday, outside the hospital, MEC Capa, accompanied by officials from Emalahleni Local and Chris Hani District municipalities and a heavy police presence, told residents that government is busy with a programme to repurpose facilities, but that nothing has been finalised and her office will still consult the community. She said she had never authorised closing or downgrading the hospital.

But residents jeered at this.

Capa assured residents the hospital will not be closed or downgraded if they are against it.

There have been other protests against the government’s plans to optimise its health facilities. In February last year, Carthcart residents closed the N6 with burning tyres, and two weeks ago Tarkastad residents protested over downgrades to their hospital.

Tarkastad Hospital board chairperson Siya Nkatu said that for years they had begged for additional equipment, such as X-ray machines, only to be told by the department that it planned to downgrade the hospital.

Eastern Cape Health MEC Ntandokazi Capa addressing residents at Indwe Hospital.

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