The Gauteng Department of Health refuses to take responsibility for the appalling conditions at state mortuaries, which are severely affecting Gauteng residents, instead blaming the City of Johannesburg (CoJ).
This became abundantly clear in MEC Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko’s replies to the Democratic Alliance’s (DA) questions recently tabled at the Gauteng Provincial Legislature (GPL).
When questioned about the tabling of the Funeral Undertakers Bill and the Funeral Industry Reform Regulations for which taxpayers forked out R3 million in 2012 under the ‘watchful eye’ of the then MEC for Economic Development, Qedani Mahlangu, Nkomo-Ralehoko claimed that Regulation No. R363 was created to regulate and reform the funeral industry.
This regulation, which is part of the National Health Act of 2003, specifically addresses the management of human remains in private and public mortuaries. However, she stated that enforcement of the regulations fell under the jurisdiction of the local government—in this case, the CoJ.
If this is the municipality’s obligation, then why did the ANC-led provincial government waste R3 million of taxpayer money in the first place? They do not care about Gauteng residents and the significant impact their inefficiencies have on the most vulnerable in society.
Earlier this month, the DA learned that the bodies of the victims of the Marshalltown fire were languishing in the state morgues due to the poor handling of this disaster by the City of Johannesburg and Premier Panyaza Lesufi’s government’s inability to intervene and ensure dignified burials.
The DA calls upon the City of Johannesburg and the Gauteng Provincial Government to stop the blame game and ensure efficient management of our mortuaries.
A DA government will review the Funeral Undertakers Bill and the Funeral Industry Reform Regulations to see how they can better serve the people of Gauteng. We cannot have policies that only look good on paper but fail to deliver tangible benefits to our residents.
The DA will continue to fight for the right of vulnerable and marginalised communities to live and die in dignity.