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Mukudzei Chingwere in Checheche, Chipinge District
With a hearty smile and glowing eyes —probably the only gateway into his mind and heart — Chief Musikavanhu, born Vusani Musikavanhu — hurriedly asks his aide to wheel him towards an advancing President Mnangagwa who himself is walking towards the Chief.
In tour with the President, is Vice President and Minister of Health and Child Care Dr Constantino Chiwenga and other Government officials. Before the aide could help the wheelchair bound Chief, the President is already standing right before the traditional leader and humbly extends his greetings.
Pleasantries are exchanged which The Herald news crew couldn’t sufficiently muster but what is palpable and apparent is the Chief’s boundless joy.
The occasion of the meeting, last Saturday, is the official handover of a 24-bed fully equipped ward, an all-terrain ambulance, an assortment of medical consumables and medical paraphernalia at St Peter’s Checheche Catholic Mission Hospital which falls under Chief Musikavanhu.
The handover is a culmination of a now 5-year-old promise by the President which he made when he assumed office that under his Presidency, Government will pull all stops to improve people’s lives in all facets, including healthcare.
On a national scale, the goal is to revamp the health services towards universal health coverage of sufficient quality consistent with an empowered upper-middle income economy resilient enough to serve its people.
Despite the albatross of illegal economic sanctions unjustly impeding the economy, Zimbabwe has defiantly forged ahead with its economic development journey primarily using local resources as per the President’s “Nyika inovakwa nevene vayo/ Ilizwe lakhiwa ngabanikazi balo”.
On Saturday, Checheche in Chipinge district had occasion to once again bear testimony.
“This is a very important hospital for us and our people here as it services the area and takes referrals from other smaller medical facilities,” said Chief Musikavanhu.
“I want to applaud the Government for its continuous improvement of the health services. Now this hospital can accommodate more patients and it has been equipped with modern equipment.
“We also had a transport challenge for the sick, but Government has solved this problem with this fully equipped ambulance,” said Chief Musikavanhu.
As the President left, the Chief was not only left a very happy man for the development brought into his jurisdiction but will also no longer need assistance for his mobility after the President gave him an automated wheelchair for his comfort.
A nurse at the hospital who spoke to this news crew but declined to be named as she was not authorized to speak to the media said the President had given the hospital a huge lift as it bids to meet its mandate.
“My brother you have no idea how the President has improved our plight here. We are a hospital with a catchment area of just under 20 000 and you will note that most of our patients are spaciously domiciled quite a distance from the hospital,” said the nurse who cannot be named.
“Such an all-terrain ambulance, like the one we have gotten, will go a long way in traversing the length and breadth of our catchment area to make sure that patients are delivered to the hospital timeously.
“You will also note that there are several referrals which we were making to the province due to lack of the necessary consumables here and in some cases we were asking patients to buy consumables on their own, but all this is no longer the case owing to this generous intervention by the President,” she said.
The President, who finds so much satisfaction on delivering for the people for the betterment of their lives was also happy but said he was not done just yet.
He took time to listen to other requests from the hospital management and local community leaders after which he immediately tasked Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Health and Child Care Air Commodore Dr Jasper Chimedza to engage them, look into the requests and see to it that all is delivered.
“We have brought some equipment but I have seen that more is needed, the doctors have told me some of the equipment needed here, it cannot be availed in a single day but we have heard your concerns and we will address them,” said the President.
“I am happy that some of the work here was done by your MP (Honourable Enock Porusingazi, using constituency development funds). I am very happy, this is what we expect from representatives, so remember his good work when the elections come.
“(Once again) I have heard your concerns and fortunately the Vice President is the Minister of Health so he understands your concerns. We also have the Permanent Secretary for Health who is also a doctor,” said the President before he dashed off to Mutema Secondary School where he later launched the Zanu PF election campaign for the August 23 general elections.
Online Reporter
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