Oversight in building plan stalls opening of hospital

The referral medical centre was expected to open its doors to the public early this year.

“We are told the mortuary was constructed in the wrong place. The Chinese will have to demolish part of the dura-wall and build the mortuary further from the kitchen and hospital wards. The opening of the giant hospital has been deferred to a date yet to be announced,” said a local police officer. He expected this to be before the next elections, saying some politicians wanted to use the medical facility as a campaign tool.

When completed, the hospital will be the biggest referral medical centre in the province, able to accommodate more than 400 patients.

At present, critically ill patients are referred to Chitungwiza for advanced medication. When this reporter visited the medical facility on Friday, all entrances were locked and a security guard was present.

The hospital has already proved a magnet for investors to the area, with business people falling over each other to secure commercial stands at the Growth Point. “Naturally, the huge number of medical specialists expected to be employed at the hospital would provide a lucrative market,” said a local businessman who identified himself as Zumbudzana.