Correctional Services act on Covid-19 case at Qalakabusha Prison in Empangeni
An inmate who had been approved for parole tested positive
THE KZN Department of Correctional Services has assured the public that all relevant protocols have been implemented to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
This after an inmate, who had been approved for parole by the president, tested positive for Covid-19 at the Qalakabusha Correctional Centre.
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A source said all the offenders approved for a presidential parole were tested on 19 May and their results returned last Wednesday.
‘The results indicated that one of the inmates in A Section was positive. On Thursday morning, all prison warders working in that section downed tools out of fear,’ said the source.
‘They unlocked the inmates and provided them with breakfast at 9am, and thereafter abandoned their work stations, demanding to be tested for Covid-19.
‘They claimed that checking their temperatures was not the solution, as no one knew how that inmate was infected.’
KZN Provincial Secretary of the Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (Popcru), Ntabeleng Molefe, confirmed that Qalakabusha management and union members had a meeting on Thursday to discuss the way forward.
‘It was agreed that all workers would be tested for Covid-19 and the Department of Health was invited to do the testing,’ she said.
‘It was also agreed that the section where the offender was held would be fumigated to prevent any spread, and workers at other sections would be screened.
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Molefe added that it was not clear how the inmate had become infected because he arrived at Qalakabusha in 2018 and has been in prison since.
‘At this stage, I cannot confirm how many workers were sent to self-quarantine, but I can confirm that the testing started on Thursday.
‘We are all awaiting the results.’
KZN spokesperson for the Department of Correctional Services, Singabakho Nxumalo, said his department followed all the protocols as stipulated by the Department of Health and the World Health Organisation.
‘To prevent stigmatisation of our workers, I don’t want to be specific, but every time when there is a Covid-19 case, we follow the strict measures,’ said Nxumalo.
‘We do contact tracing and testing. We also fumigate the centre.’
The national Department of Correctional Service’s Covid-19 statistics on Friday indicated that, nationally, 393 officials have been infected, with three deaths reported, while 632 inmates have been infected and three deaths recorded.
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