Limpopo Measles Outbreak: MEC Ramathuba Must Urgently Brief the Province on Containment Measures
Sello Lediga
ActionSA Limpopo Provincial Chairperson
ActionSA notes with deep concern, the rising number of cases of measles in the Limpopo Province. This is after the National Institute of Communicable Diseases reported that 12 cases have been confirmed in the Greater Sekhukhune District and 3 in the Mopani District.
As at yesterday, this outbreak was confined to one district of the province. Just last night the MEC of Health, Phophi Ramathuba, confirmed that it had spread to a neighbouring district.
ActionSA will, today, write to MEC Ramathuba requesting that she immediately addresses the province and makes public her immediate plans to arrest the spread of this outbreak and what her long-term plans are to improve the vaccination rates in the province.
By the MEC’s own admission, the measles vaccination rates have been unsatisfactory for some years now. This is as disappointing as it is unsurprising wherever the ANC is in government.
The rising number of active measles cases- particularly in the Fetakgomo Tubatse Municipality and Elias Motsoaledi Municipality- are the fruits of poor service delivery and the neglect of the public health system in Limpopo and the rest of the country.
We urge the Limpopo Health Department to be proactive in dealing with the increasing rate of infections to avoid the further spreading of the virus threatening to further overwhelm an already overburdened provincial health system.
South Africa and the rest of the world are still grappling with the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and have also made strides in this regard. We must heed the lessons of the past two years and stop this pandemic dead in its tracks.
We will continue in our oversight efforts to ensure that tracking the cases and increasing immunisation awareness amongst marginalised communities to avoid further spreading of the disease.
Limpopo Measles Outbreak: MEC Ramathuba Must Urgently Brief the Province on Containment Measures
ActionSA notes with deep concern, the rising number of cases of measles in the Limpopo Province. This is after the National Institute of Communicable Diseases reported that 12 cases have been confirmed in the Greater Sekhukhune District and 3 in the Mopani District.
As at yesterday, this outbreak was confined to one district of the province. Just last night the MEC of Health, Phophi Ramathuba, confirmed that it had spread to a neighbouring district.
ActionSA will, today, write to MEC Ramathuba requesting that she immediately addresses the province and makes public her immediate plans to arrest the spread of this outbreak and what her long-term plans are to improve the vaccination rates in the province.
By the MEC’s own admission, the measles vaccination rates have been unsatisfactory for some years now. This is as disappointing as it is unsurprising wherever the ANC is in government.
The rising number of active measles cases- particularly in the Fetakgomo Tubatse Municipality and Elias Motsoaledi Municipality- are the fruits of poor service delivery and the neglect of the public health system in Limpopo and the rest of the country.
We urge the Limpopo Health Department to be proactive in dealing with the increasing rate of infections to avoid the further spreading of the virus threatening to further overwhelm an already overburdened provincial health system.
South Africa and the rest of the world are still grappling with the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and have also made strides in this regard. We must heed the lessons of the past two years and stop this pandemic dead in its tracks.
We will continue in our oversight efforts to ensure that tracking the cases and increasing immunisation awareness amongst marginalised communities to avoid further spreading of the disease.