A National Council of Provinces (NCOP) delegation called for full accountability from the Department of Health, the City of Matlosana Local Municipality and the North West Liquor Board regarding the proliferation of taverns operating in close proximity to healthcare facilities.
The delegation visited Tigane Community Health Centre, Kanana Clinic and Grace Mokhomo Community Health Centre in the City of Matlosana Local Municipality as part of the Taking Parliament to the People programme.
“We need to be informed about what the department, the municipality and the liquor board are doing to address the proximity of taverns to healthcare facilities. They must provide us with detailed steps on what interventions have been implemented to resolve this matter. When our doctors arrive at these facilities, their focus should be on providing healthcare to communities, not on dodging bullets,” said Ms Lungile Mhlongo, a member of the delegation.
The delegation was informed that the presence of taverns near healthcare facilities poses a serious security risk. Gang-related incidents in the area have reportedly resulted in injured individuals entering healthcare facilities while being pursued by rival gang members, leading to violent altercations within clinic premises.
At Kanana Clinic, the delegation heard that stray bullets had previously struck the healthcare facility, although fortunately no injuries were reported.
The delegation also raised concerns regarding infrastructure challenges at all the facilities visited, particularly as the municipality owns land adjacent to some of these facilities. “It is unacceptable that within the spirit of cooperative governance, these land-related challenges are only highlighted when the NCOP visits the area, despite the municipality having adjacent land available. The question is: what collaborative efforts have been undertaken to resolve these challenges?” said Ms Tidimalo Legwase, another member of the delegation.
While the delegation acknowledged the department’s phased approach to addressing infrastructure challenges, it stressed the importance of clear implementation timelines to ensure accountability. “We want the department to provide clear and concise timelines indicating when infrastructure upgrades at healthcare facilities will be completed, especially critical areas such as clinic waste disposal rooms, which we have been informed are currently non-compliant,” said Mr Les Govender, Deputy NCOP Chairperson.
The delegation emphasised that quality basic healthcare is a constitutional right and that the department must do more to ensure adequate healthcare provision. Members of Parliament further stressed that this objective would remain unattainable if clinics are not sufficiently capacitated with human and medical resources to meet demand.
Across all the facilities visited, high vacancy rates were identified as a major challenge affecting service delivery. The delegation was also concerned that Tigane Community Health Centre does not have a resident doctor and currently experiences patient turnaround times exceeding three hours.
The NCOP is expected to receive further submissions on health-related challenges affecting communities during today’s public hearings.
Malatswa Molepo
14 May 2026
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