Abandoned ablution facility next to Rob Ferreira Hospital compromises safety
The ablution building used to be in service for people visiting the hospital and members of the public. Currently it is abandoned, damaged and possibly dangerous.
An abandoned ablution building at the gate of Rob Ferreira Hospital needs urgent attention as it attracts criminal activity and compromises the safety of staff, patients and the community.
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So said the chairperson of the Kruger Lowveld Chamber of Business and Tourism (KLCBT), Pr TJ Maré.
Maré said the building belongs to the City of Mbombela (CoM), and it is unclear why it was ignored until it reached the stage it is in now. “The ablution building used to cater for people visiting the hospital and members of the public. The building has not been utilised over the past two to three years, and now drug addicts and criminals use it as their hiding place,”
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He said the situation not only compromises the safety of the patients and staff, but also the public, as it situated next to a shopping centre and businesses. “People can be attacked at any time while passing there, because it’s easy for criminals to hide inside the building. The staff leaving at night are also in danger. We therefore demand that the municipality rebuild the place so that it can be used again,” Maré said.
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He told Lowvelder that the roofing of the building had been stolen and the water and electricity were cut off, which shows that the municipality is aware of the building. He also urged local business to intervene, but stressed that ultimately it is CoM’s responsibility to properly repair it.
CoM’s spokesperson, Joseph Ngala, said the relevant properties belong to the Provincial Government and not the municipality. “I checked
on Windeed, and the properties are registered in the name of the Mpumalanga Provincial Government under title deed T6645/1988,” he said.
The provincial Department of Health’s spokesperson, Dumisane Malamule, insisted that the building does not belong to the hospital, but is CoM’s property.
“Our yard ends at the fence. Outside is municipal area. That building does not belong to the hospital,” he said.
