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| The commissioning of the repaired X-ray machine by minister Chadzamira |
Beatific
Gumbwanda
The Lowveld Business Development
Association (LOBDA), a union of businesspersons in the sugarcane town of Chiredzi, has come to the rescue of Chiredzi General Hospital after they
repaired the hospital’s sole X-ray machine which had broken down 2 years ago.
Speaking during the commissioning of
the repaired radiology machine last week at Chiredzi General Hospital by the Minister
of State for Masvingo Provincial Affairs and Devolution, Ezra Chadzamira, LOBDA
chairperson Venancia Kurauone said their intervention came at a time when
people were finding it hard to access X-ray services.
“We had a challenge as a district as we
no longer had an X-ray machine after the one we had had gone for two years
without being repaired. We came together as an organisation and pooled
resources for the machine to be repaired.
“This hospital has a lot of areas which
need improvements and we are doing everything we can to make sure that we
address the challenges,” said Kurauone.
Chiredzi District Medical
Superintendent David Tarumbwa expressed gratitude over the gesture and said
LOBDA has been an all-weather friend to the hospital.
“This hospital was birthed in 1968
meaning it served from the Rhodesian times up to now. So our hospital needed a
facelift which we were helped by our local stakeholders.
“Chiredzi General Hospital is a 180 bed
hospital and we are also a referral hospital for the whole district. We had
close to two years without having X-ray services and some of our patients were
forced to go to private hospitals and as far as Checheche.
“I can today safely say that LODBA
managed to repair the only X-ray machine we had at the hospital.
“LOBDA has done a lot of improvements
at the hospital and we are very grateful,” said Dr Tarumbwa.
Chadzamira called on the business
community and other stakeholders to emulate the gesture by LOBDA saying
delivering a world class health delivery system was a top priority of the President
Mnangagwa led government.
LOBDA pleaded with Chadzamira to make
sure that the resources from Masvingo benefit locals to boost the province’s
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) which they said was trailing due to ‘foreign’
takeover.
LOBDA argues that business opportunities
in the Lowveld are being enjoyed by people from other provinces while the
locals continue to suffer.
Dendairy, a milk processing company from
Midlands province, is set to acquire more than 10 000 hectares of land in
Chiredzi South and East for Lucerne grass production at the expense of the
locals.
