In the next few months the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) will place public and private health care services under strain that no one could have foreseen or properly planned for, and it is imperative that differences are put aside so that every good idea can be heard and considered, DA leader John Steenhuisen said on Saturday.
‘One of SA’s greatest challenges’
“Today, as we celebrate our hard-fought human rights, our country stands before one of its greatest tests ever,” DA leader John Steenhuisen said in a statement.
“The spread of COVID-19 through our cities, towns and villages will stretch, to the very limit, the ability of our state to safeguard these human rights. And it will test our resolve and resourcefulness, as a nation, in containing and mitigating this spread, in treating those who require care and in rebuilding our shattered economy,” he said.
“In our Bill of Rights, in section 27 of the Constitution, it is written that everyone has the right to have access to health care services, and that no one may be refused emergency medical treatment. Under normal circumstances, upholding these rights has proven hard enough. But the coming months will place our public and private healthcare services under the kind of strain that no one could have foreseen or properly planned for.
“This is a time for all South Africans to work together. We cannot afford the distraction of blaming and political point-scoring. Solutions to this crisis – whether financial, logistical or medical – will come from individuals, from the private sector and from right across the political spectrum. It is imperative that we put aside our differences and ‘park our egos’ so that every good idea can be heard and considered.
‘Tough action only option’
Some of the emergency measures announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa could seem drastic and would undoubtedly have a profound effect on the economy and particularly small businesses, but there was no doubt that it was the right call.
“If you look at what has happened in countries where the spread of the virus wasn’t slowed down soon enough, you realise that tough, bold action is the only option. We simply have to give our healthcare workers every possible chance to treat those who need emergency care, and this means slowing down the rate of infection as much as we can. We can rebuild what we lost in our economy, but we can’t bring back lives that were lost,” Steenhuisen said.
“Government’s response in terms of containment of the virus has been good. Now it needs to do the same to protect our economy and the livelihoods of thousands of business owners and their employees. Small businesses, in particular, do not have the reserves to withstand this crisis on their own, and they will need government’s help.
“We have no choice but to find each other – to build a new majority that puts our people first. This new majority was always going to be the way forward for our country, but suddenly the timeline has dramatically shortened. We have to do it now,” he said.
– African News Agency (ANA), editing by Jacques Keet
Source: The South African Read More
