Members of Parliament have lobbied the government to address the constant breaking down of mortuaries at public hospitals and the incessant power cuts as most of them do not have functional back-up generators.
Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA) last week introduced a load shedding schedule, which will see some areas going for about 10 hours without power.
Kariba MP John Roland Houghton raised the issue at Parliament, Wednesday, during a debate on the state of Mpilo Hospital and United Bulawayo Hospitals (UBH) mortuaries.
“My issue on mortuaries is with the power cuts, what does the Minister intend to do about all the mortuaries as generators 90% to 95% of them are backup generators and are not working?
“What is the Minister going to do about that because powers cuts have started already?” asked Hon Houghton.
In response, Minister of Health and Child Care Dr. Obidiah Moyo said the government would make sure that mortuary generators operate continuously.
“We have measures which are taken at each and every health institution, especially with mortuaries.
“We are making sure that the generators fire on a continuous basis and also that is something which we always say is an emergency. There has to be a generation of power at health institutions, otherwise, we will be in big trouble.
“One of the areas we always consider as being a priority is the mortuary,” said Dr. Moyo.
Dr. Moyo said the ministry was aiming to fix to attend to the mortuaries at the two public health institutions which are currently experiencing refrigeration problems.
“The ministry has been experiencing constant break downs of mechanical equipment due to old age and lack of maintenance.
“However, for mortuaries, the ministry’s aim is to bid for funds for the repairs and replacement of the mortuaries. The two institutions (Mpilo and UBH) are going to benefit from these funds to rectify the problems which are being encountered.”
Mpopoma-Pelandaba MP Charles Moyo, however, fumed demanding a time frame on when all this will be implemented.
“The new dispensation is known for fake promises. Can the Honourable Minister highlight in terms of time frame,” Hon Moyo said.
