By Thapelo Molefe
Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Health has raised alarm over the disruption of health services by Operation Dudula and similar groups, warning that their actions threaten constitutional rights and risk denying legitimate patients access to treatment.
Speaking during a social services cluster media briefing on Thursday, committee chairperson Sibongiseni Dhlomo said that while citizens’ concerns about pressure on clinics and hospitals must be acknowledged, “blocking patients at the gates of hospitals is not the solution”.
He noted that the Constitution guaranteed access to emergency medical care for all, regardless of nationality, and cautioned that undocumented South Africans such as those who lost identity documents in shack fires were also at risk of being unfairly targeted.
“The absence of a document should not allow anyone to be blocked from accessing healthcare,” Dhlomo said, urging Operation Dudula activists to abandon vigilante tactics.
He confirmed that discussions with the Health Minister
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