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DENOSA Gauteng vindicated on unfair suspension of the Mamelodi Hospital nurse
Media statement
Monday, 05 August 2019
The Democratic Nursing Organisation of South Africa (DENOSA) in Gauteng feels vindicated about the unfair precautionary suspension of a nurse at Mamelodi Hospital who, after 60 days, has not been charged.
This has proven us right that there was never a single charge that was going to stick as the nurse was never party to the incident that occurred at Mamelodi Hospital a few months ago. This means the nurse returns to work today, as the 60 days grace period, within which the Department could have formed charges if there we any, lapsed on Friday. A representative from DENOSA accompanied her to report for duty today.
Once again, DENOSA condemns both the Minister of Health and MEC of Health in the province for their quickness in running to the media and implicating the nurse prematurely and without any solid basis. Our expression of this is because nurses, generally, do not enjoy any good public image and are seen in a negative light on many occasions. The Minister and MEC should know better and not be adding fuel to the hatred unnecessarily.
Back to the circumstances that led to the precautionary suspension of our member, in terms of Public Service Coordinating Bargaining Council (PSCBC) Resolution 1 of 2003 on Disciplinary Code and Procedures on Precautionary Suspension in the public service, states clearly that:
“If an employee is suspended or transferred as a precautionary measure, the employer must hold a disciplinary hearing within a month or 60 days, depending on the complexity of the matter and the length of the investigation. The chair of the hearing must then decide on any further postponement.”
We issue this statement because, on far too many occasions, nurses get labelled and called all sorts of names in the public domain, but whenever they are exonerated, not a single word goes to the public and it becomes a secret that their names have been cleared.
“We made a plea to the Department previously, that it also comes out at the end of the process and informs the public about the end-result,” says DENOSA Gauteng Provincial Chairperson, Simphiwe Gada.
“We hope the Department will still come out so that the dark cloud that is hanging over the nurse and many nurses working at Mamelodi Hospital is cleared so that they can render their service free of any worries.”
End
Issued by DENOSA in Gauteng
For more information, contact:
Simphiwe Gada, DENOSA Gauteng Chairperson
Mobile: 072 563 1923
Bongani Mazibuko, DENOSA Acting Provincial Secretary
Mobile: 072 620 8806
