Omuthiya hospital haunts Govt

A CHINESE funded state hospital at Omuthiya continues to attract controversy, the latest being President Hage Geingob who expressed dissatisfaction at the lack of usage of medical equipment.

Geingob expressed concern last week during his visit at Omuthiya, a town situated 10 kilometres from Etosha National Park in the northern part of the country.

Presidential press secretary Albertus Aochamub told The Namibian that the President “is disappointed with the fact that brand new equipment installed at the facility is not being put to productive use”.

Regional leaders complained this year that instructions on the operation of the equipment are written in Chinese which locals cannot read.

Geingob called for better planning even when facilities are donated to Namibia.

The hospital was donated to the Namibian government when former Chinese president Hu Jintao visited Namibia in 2007.

The health facility has however been associated with controversy from the beginning, with former health minister Richard Kamwi and former works minister Erkki Nghimtina clashing on the standard of the hospital in 2012.

At that time, Kamwi believed that the hospital was not worth inaugurating because it was substandard, while Nghimtina said the designs were approved after consultations with both the health and works ministries.

Nghimtina said then that Kamwi’s criticism had the potential to jeopardise the good bilateral and international relationships with China.

The irony of Nghimtina’s comments was that they were made three years after the Chinese government secretly awarded scholarships to children of nine top officials, including his child, to study in China.

Aochamub said the alleged confrontation between Kamwi and Nghimtina is news to him because it was “not contained in any formal documentation at Cabinet or elsewhere”.

The Chinese government offered to build a health facility for Namibia anywhere the government wanted and former President Hifikepunye Pohamba and Kamwi chose the Omuthiya area because of the high rate of accidents on that road and the lack of hospitals in the vicinity.

It appears the disagreement between the two politicians affected the progress of the hospital.

The Presidency declined to single out which ministry should be held accountable for the delays or be drawn into the debate of political battles.

Geingob’s office said “government is seized with the matter and will address it through the appropriate channels. It remains a matter of grave concern and requires speedy resolution”.

Asked what Geingob will do to sort out the delays, Aochamub said relevant agencies of government are attending to the issue as a matter of “urgency and we will report progress as it unfolds”.

The Namibian reported in April this year that the hospital had become a headache and had not been completed six years after the first brick was laid.

Although the 64-bed hospital has opened for business, the report said the construction is incomplete, light bulbs were not working while the drainage system was dysfunctional.

The abandoned wards are overgrown with grass and weeds. The Namibian noticed that the hospital’s main gate was falling apart.

The perimeter fence which was vandalised in several places in 2012, has however been repaired.

Although Aochamub said the President did not blame Kamwi or Nghimtina when he visited Omuthiya, The Namibian understands that Geingob refrained from blaiming Nghimtina, who is his labour minister and supported his candidacy for President in 2012.

Kamwi on the other hand supported youth minister Jerry Ekandjo to take over from Pohamba. Kamwi was even summoned to the Swapo policy conference in 2012 to explain why he was reluctant to inaugurate the hospital.

The former minister told his comrades that the hospital was not of a good standard and would endanger the lives of patients.

Efforts to get comment from Nghimtina and Kamwi were not successful.

In an age of information overload, Sunrise is The Namibian’s morning briefing, delivered at 6h00 from Monday to Friday. It offers a curated rundown of the most important stories from the past 24 hours – occasionally with a light, witty touch. It’s an essential way to stay informed. Subscribe and join our newsletter community.