THE South African Communist Party (SACP) has blasted Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana for his comments on the National Health Insurance (NHI) Bill.
Party’s general secretary Solly Mapaila said the NHI has gone through extensive consultation over a long period, and in addition public hearings and debate in the portfolio committee on health.
“By throwing cold water on the NHI at the recent Naspers controlled News24’s 'On the Record Summit', Godongwana undermines the collective wisdom of South Africans who support it, including parliament, which passed the bill,” he said.
Godongwana told the On the Record Summit in August that he doubted the scheme would work.
“I found this thing already in parliament when I joined. There are a lot of missing things in it. Everybody agrees that you need universal coverage. For universal coverage to succeed, it must be funded by society but the mechanics that are proposed in the bill create tensions between Treasury and the Health Department,” the minister said.
Mapaila said Godongwana’s utterances reflect nothing but uncritical agreement with what the opponents of universal quality healthcare through the NHI have been saying.
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He said the African National Congress (ANC) must call Godongwana to order publicly and hold him accountable.
“Who is Godongwana’s handler if he does not follow mandate from the ANC in alliance with the SACP and the progressive trade union and civic movements? There is a widely circulating letter appearing to be originating from the National Treasury under Godongwana’s stewardship. The letter does nothing but bring down the ANC or reduces its support through austerity in the context of the next national and provincial government elections to be held in under a year from now,” he said.
He said the minister’s utterances against the NHI could be part of the same agenda, adding that the matter cannot be left unchallenged.
The National Assembly adopted the bill last month after consultation, public hearings and debate.
He said the SACP will mobilise its structures and communities to support full implementation of the NHI.
“We will therefore raise this matter within the alliance, over and above tackling his utterances and attitude publicly and driving our campaign in defence of the NHI and against the neoliberal policy of austerity,” said Mapaila.
