Programme Director and MEC for Health, Mr GP Mashego,
Minister of Health, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi,
Mayor of Govan Mbeki Municipality, Cllr Flora Maboa-Boltman,
Joint CEOs of Sasol, Mr Bongani Nqwababa and Mr Stephen Cornell,
Leadership of the South African National AIDS Council,
Clinic Operations Manager, Sister Eunice Ngobeni,
Chairperson of the Clinic Committee, Mr Bafana Msibi,
Traditional Leadership,
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Halala mphakathi wase Mbalenhle, Halala!
Qhakaza Mbalenhle, Qhakaza!
Asphile bantu base Mbalenhle, Asphile!
Today’s opening of this clinic is a source of joy and pride to the people of Mbalenhle Extension 14 and the province of Mpumalanga.
It reflects our shared commitment to build a compassionate society in which all have access to quality health care.
It demonstrates our nation’s ability to bring social partners together to create a more humane and inclusive society.
When we first visited here in November 2014, we were shocked by the state of the clinic, by the lack of adequate infrastructure and appropriate facilities.
We were deeply impressed, however, by the dedication of the clinic staff to tend to the needs of the community under such difficult conditions.
It is from that visit, that the partners gathered here were spurred into action.
Thanks to them, we understand better why our ancestors said:
“If you want to go quickly, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”
We extend our heartfelt gratitude to Sasol for being a trusted ally of our people in working to transform and improve the health system that we inherited from a past of neglect and deprivation.
Side by side with our people, Sasol has sought to champion the health of this community.
As a valued partner for social development, the company has embraced the vision of a united, just and equitable society.
Sasol’s investment in health, education, sport, conservation and employment creation goes to the heart of our people’s dignity.
It fuels our nation’s dreams.
It nourishes the hopes of vulnerable communities.
We thank the leadership of this company for fulfilling the promise it made in November 2014 to broaden access to quality health care in Mbalenhle.
Today, this area boasts a health facility that is better placed to meet the health demands of local residents.
Today, more people have better prospects of receiving quality health care in dignity.
Today, we have a better chance of saving lives and preventing the spread of diseases.
The clinic must be a source of knowledge for residents.
It must be a sanctuary that welcomes young people who wish to access condoms, contraceptives and treatment for infections like TB and HIV.
It must be a refuge for mothers and babies who are injured or sick or in need of emergency care.
Compassion, warmth and safety must be the defining experience of all who come to the clinic.
No patients should be stigmatised.
No patients should be discriminated against.
We are certain that the new facility will improve the working conditions and boost the morale of health care workers.
For it is ultimately not the new building and its facilities that will define the experience of the members of the community that come here.
It is our caring nurses and dedicated management that will drive the improvements in health outcomes here in Extension 14.
Through their empathy and expertise, the community will feel valued, respected and cared for.
As a community, we carry the responsibility of making sure that our health workers are safe and feel safe.
We carry the responsibility of heeding the counsel of health workers by maintaining a healthy lifestyle in our homes, schools and places of work.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
This clinic is a treasure we should all preserve, protect and continue to develop.
It is a public asset built by the community and it belongs to this community.
We urge you to guard and protect your hard-earned investment.
The committee and its stakeholders must remain the guarantors of the success of the clinic.
We make a special appeal to Sasol to continue to find a meaningful role in the future of the clinic and the community.
On behalf of SANAC, I wish to take this opportunity to pay tribute to the SA Business Coalition on Health and AIDS (SABCOHA).
We thank SABCOHA for its continued efforts in mobilising resources from the private sector to improve the provision of health in our country.
Thank you for treating the wellbeing of our nation not as a cost, but as an investment.
We urge many more in the business community to expand social opportunities by investing in the health of South Africans.
Brick by brick, we are laying the foundation of the society we want to achieve by 2030.
This is a society in which we say:
“I am not self-sufficient alone. We are self-sufficient in community.”
As we say in the Vision Statement of the National Development Plan, this is a society where:
We feel loved, respected and cared for at home, in community and the public institutions we have created.
We feel understood.
We feel needed.
We feel trustful.
We feel trusted.
We feel accommodative.
We feel accommodated.
We feel informed.
We feel healthy.
We feel safe.
We feel resourceful and inventive.
We learn together.
We talk to each other.
We share our work.
We play.
We worship.
We ponder and laugh.
We are energised by sharing our resourcefulness.
I thank you.
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