De Lille - ‘President Mbeki must put health of our Nation before health of the Minister’
19-08-2007, 13H15, ID President Patricia de Lille, reacting to the latest Sunday Times report on Health Minister Tshabalala-Msimang, says ‘this acrimonious fight that started with the President’s firing of Deputy-Minister of Health, Madlala-Routledge, must now come to an end.
‘It is very sad that the President failed to show strong leadership by
trying to bring the two ministers together, but rather took sides with
Tshabalala-Msimang,’ says De Lille.
‘The President needs to show leadership - he must also be consistent and he must now act against the Minister of Health in respect of the latest allegations.
‘The health of our nation must come before the health of the minister. The President owes his allegiance to the people of South Africa and not to the Minister, and we can no longer afford to carry her on our shoulders when it should be the other way around,’ De Lille says.
‘The President must remember that any foreign direct investors and investors in general are only prepared to invest their money in a nation of healthy people.
‘We will not have foreign direct investment when the health of our nation is in the state it is in today where thousands of people are dying of preventable diseases,’ says De Lille.
‘The slow pace of the rollout of ARVs, which is not a cure but can improve the quality of life of millions of HIV positive South Africans, is not only having a negative impact on our poor, but also on foreign direct investment.
Released by ID President Patricia de Lille – 084 777 2065
‘The President needs to show leadership - he must also be consistent and he must now act against the Minister of Health in respect of the latest allegations.
‘The health of our nation must come before the health of the minister. The President owes his allegiance to the people of South Africa and not to the Minister, and we can no longer afford to carry her on our shoulders when it should be the other way around,’ De Lille says.
‘The President must remember that any foreign direct investors and investors in general are only prepared to invest their money in a nation of healthy people.
‘We will not have foreign direct investment when the health of our nation is in the state it is in today where thousands of people are dying of preventable diseases,’ says De Lille.
‘The slow pace of the rollout of ARVs, which is not a cure but can improve the quality of life of millions of HIV positive South Africans, is not only having a negative impact on our poor, but also on foreign direct investment.
Released by ID President Patricia de Lille – 084 777 2065
