Govt stands by farmers

The Free State provincial government has not abandoned its responsibility to assist drought stricken farmers including large scale commercial farmers but it was expected that the province would be receiving rains by this time, agriculture MEC Oupa Khoabane said.

Responding to a statement from DA member of the provincial legislature Roy Jankielsohn who suggested that the provincial government had failed commercial farmers, Khoabane said the continued drought had left the central parts of the country in a dire situation.

He said it had been predicted that we would be receiving rains by this time of year and as a result, government had sort of scaled down its assistance efforts but had not stopped completely.
“Government had not distributed the drought relief based on those predictions,” said Khoabane.

“It will be a lie to say that government is doing nothing to help famers. Farmers also know that we have to work base on the weather predictions. The other point is that government processes take time such that in some cases, by the time we reach some farmers, the drought would have passed,” he added.

In another oral response, former health MEC Benny Malakoane said newly built Albert Nzula-hospital in Trompsburg could face serious staff when it opens.

The hospital which was built at a cost of about R380 million has been lying idle for nearly three years as government is yet to fully equip the health facility, hire the required medical and support staff as well as fix a host of snags before opening the hospital doors to the public.

Malakoane, who answered questions on behalf of the current health MEC Butana Komphela who was absent from the house, said the provincial health department had only advertised 77 posts for the hospital which needed a staff complement of at least 196.

He said there were plans to open the hospital as early as next month or delay the opening to the beginning of next year.