This week I choose to be gullible and I guess it’s because I have been longing for some positive news.
Politicians like promising ordinary men and women the moon and somehow the masses tend to believe the lies.
While I normally take what political office holders say with a pinch of salt because most of the time it will be wishful thinking, this time I choose to give them the benefit of the doubt.
On Tuesday, Vice President and Health Minister, Constantino Chiwenga announced that government will no longer avail foreign currency to cabinet ministers and senior government officials to seek medical treatment outside the country as the trips are bleeding the country of scarce forex.
Besides, he said the government is working on turning around the public health sector.
Sounds unrealistic right? At the very last it’s extremely hypocritical!
Chiwenga himself spent the better part of last year in India, South Africa and China receiving medical attention. His last trip to China was in July for a medical check-up.
So this coming from a man who is always out there seeking medical attention sounds like a cruel joke. But I like said, I choose to give him a little chance.
For starters, Zimbabwe’s health sector was for some years in good shape until the Zanu PF led government, under the leadership of the late Robert Mugabe, presided over its downfall.
The infrastructure is there and it will only take the political will, and of course funding, to turn the health sector around.
It’s something that cannot be achieved overnight but if the Vice President puts his mind to it, I am sure he can achieve such a feat – after all he is the country’s second in command.
“….. we want to do away with that (seeking healthcare abroad) and it requires us to carry out restructuring from the village health worker right up to the quaternary hospital,” said Chiwenga as he unveiled an ambitious programme to reform the health sector.
Though he did not say how this will be funded considering we are broke nation, he surely knows better what he was talking about.
Time will tell if the VP was politicking or making genuine remarks about reforming the health sector but as already said, I have decided to believe him. In any case, although there is a famous expression to the contrary, hope does not kill.
On a different note, our war veterans who never cease to amaze by making silly demands now think they deserve honorary degrees because they brought us independence…I give up!