Author: Kathryn Cleary

By Jako Bezuidenhout Sowat 30 jare terug is die laaste van ñ groepie mense wat as “bruin” of “kleurling” geklasifiseer is verwyder van Fingo Village, omdat dit ñ sogenaamde “Swart” gebied was. Die verwydering van kleurlingmense was deel van die Groepsgebiedewet van 1950 wat die hoeksteun van die apartheid-regering was. Die mense is verwyder na sogenaamde “Kleurling-gebiede” op die buitewyke van Grahamstad, waar “Ghost Town” en “Vergenoeg” vandag staan. Dié mense sou leer van vernedering en swaarkry. As deel van ñ initiatief van die Isikhumbuzo-stigting, onder leiding van Professor Julie Wells van Rhodes Universiteit, het kleurling voormaalige inwoners van Fingo…

Makana should have at least eight operational ambulances. There is no public information available about the Department of Health’s local emergency medical services, but it seems little has changed since a shocking 2015 report by the Human Rights Commission. Kathryn Cleary reports. Two weeks ago Grocott’s Mail reported on the heartbreak of two Makana families as they waited in vain for ambulances. The Department of Health has declined to provide official confirmation about emergency medical services in Makana but estimates are that there are at most three serving this municipality’s approximate population of 80 391 over an area of 4 376…

Sun City is an informal settlement below Hooggenoeg in Grahamstown (Makhanda). It is speculated that between 300 and 500 people call the settlement home. The city was built on top of a landfill, and has no formal sewer services. Community members use bucket toilets, and have two water taps. Young children run barefoot through the muddy pathways between shacks, dogs and other animals dig through piles of rubbish for something to eat, and laundry lines are carefully hung over rivers of raw sewage. The smell is pungent; a mixture of spoiled food and human faeces. 19 September, Grocott’s Mail visited…

A shortage of public ambulance services is affecting the well-being of residents across Makana Municipality, particularly in outlying areas. Kathryn Cleary reports Lene Davis was at work on the morning of 23 August when she received a phone call from her father in Hooggenoeg, Grahamstown (Makhanda). He said her uncle had passed away in their family home. Davis’s uncle was reportedly suffering from throat cancer, but was a pensioner with no medical aid for specialised services. Davis rushed home to find her family waiting for EMS and the police to come certify and remove the body. She said her family…

The South African Police Service (SAPS) continue to warn the public of unconfirmed information currently being circulated on various social media platforms. Police caution users against such information including video clips depicting child kidnappings and abductions. Police state that “since these postings started going viral, [we have] been trying to confirm if those depictions did or did not occur in any part of South Africa.” Police assert that there remains no evidence to suggest that these incidents are factual and occurred in South Africa. “By now, besides reporting this to the police, one would have expected at least a family…

POLICE WARN SOCIAL MEDIA USERS TO VERIFY INFORMATION BEFORE POSTING ON CHATS  Police have appealed to social media users to refrain from posting unverified information on social media sites. This comes after two unrelated incidents were circulating on social media platforms yesterday, Wednesday, 5 September 2018, warning community members of incidents of kidnapping of children in and around the Nelson Mandela Bay Metro (PE, Motherwell and Uitenhage) . Police [would] also like to allay fears on social media that no truck was stopped that was used in transporting children [in the] suspicion of trafficking between Nanaga and Port Elizabeth. However…

In the aftermath of Health Ombudsman Malegapuru Makgoba’s shocking report on Tower Hospital in Fort Beaufort, Grocott’s Mail spoke to affected communities about their concerns. Fort Beaufort community members are filled with disappointment, and one Grahamstown (Makhanda) medical practitioner expresses their fear after the Ombud’s attack on whistleblower, Dr Kiran Sukeri.  “It’s appalling that I am worried about speaking to you at [my place of work],” said the practitioner to Grocott’s Mail. “I am afraid.” The source described their shock over the report, criticising the comments about the whistleblower and questioning Makgoba’s integrity. “It’s not [Dr Sukeri’s] competence that should be questioned,” they said. “It’s…

On 25 October 2010, Kim Smith’s* brother Lester Adams* was pronounced dead at Tower Hospital in Fort Beaufort. This was 13 days after his transfer from Fort England in Grahamstown (Makhanda). He was 45 years old. “I cannot tell you what happened in those 13 days,” said Smith*. “To me, it was only a few days. I thought ‘Okay it’s only a few days. He will be fine.’” Adams* had no pre-existing medical conditions, Smith* said, and was transferred to Tower for long-term psychiatric care. Since 2010, she has yet to receive any answers as to how her brother died.…

Several private healthcare practitioners in the Grahamstown (Makhanda) area have put a stop to their after-hours care services. This leaves residents little choice but to visit their local public hospital for any after-hours emergency. With the Eastern Cape suffering from a lack of healthcare resources, local residents are concerned about their options for adequate care. One Grahamstown (Makhanda) private practise issued a letter to their patients stating that they will no longer offer after-hours care as of 1 September. Their reasoning behind the decision includes the low number of general practitioners in the area given the growing demographic of private…

On Tuesday 14 August, community members eagerly gathered at the Grahamstown (Makhanda) SPCA in honour of the grand opening of the brand new clinic. In just over four months, through generous donations and support from local businesses and animal welfare organisations, the clinic became a reality. Featuring at-cost services for pet owners, Mark Thomas, SPCA Manager, hopes that the clinic will assist those who cannot afford state veterinary services.  Dr Ashleigh Lemon, Compulsory Community Service (CCS) vet, has worked with Thomas to make this clinic possible. Fees at the new clinic range from R100 for a male cat to R300…