A CLINIC in an impoverished part of Port Elizabeth was closed for a whole week after nursing staff went on study leave.

The clinic at Joe Slovo – an area with high Aids and TB rates – is run by the municipality, but staff is provided by province. The nurses were given permission by province to go on study leave.

Angry ANC ward councillor Mbongeni Bungane told the Nelson Mandela Bay council’s public health committee yesterday the clinic had been closed for the whole of last week.

He said people had come to his house and office to ask why the clinic was closed and he had been unable to provide an answer.

“The council cannot operate like this,” he said.

Bungane said what had happened was a disaster.

“Officials must go there and tell the people what has happened”.

Zandisile Qupe (ANC) added that “to talk of closing a clinic because staff are going on study leave is ridiculous”.

Qupe said public health director Elizabeth Mamisa Chabula-Nxiweni and primary healthcare director Ebrahim Hoosain should ensure that a public meeting was called in Joe Slovo.

While that was being prepared there was a needed for “political intervention strategy so that we can see how to deal with this”.

He said the meeting with the people of Joe Slovo should happen within seven days and, in addition, the committee wanted a report of what had happened submitted at its next meeting.

Qupe said if officials had not acted properly “they must take the blame”.

Hoosain said the clinic was one of three built in terms of a service level agreement with the provincial Health Department in terms of which it would provide the staff.

He said after delays in response from Bhisho, he had spoken to the regional office and they had supplied staff. Province, he said, had given the nurses permission to go on study leave and “we had to close it”.

Hoosain confirmed to Bungane the clinic was open again.

Earlier in the meeting, Bungane lashed out at the way in which the metro operated, saying the municipality was “very lazy and the council is very lazy”.

Criticising the performance of health officials, he called on the committee to “stamp our authority” on the way things should happen.

Terry Herbst (DA) said councillors should take note of what Bungane had said as it was unacceptable public representatives were blamed for “matters beyond their control”.

Herbst also referred to a report on clinics submitted at the last safety and security meeting that he said was “scandalous”.

The report on inspections at several clinics pointed to “dirty, stinking toilets that could lead to a health hazard” at Kwazakhele as well as a lack of proper ventilation, broken toilets at West End and the fact that medical waste was not thrown into a dedicated bin at several clinics.

Municipal spokesman Kupido Baron, however, said the clinic was only closed for one day, not for a week.

He said this was as a result of provincial nurses going for training.

Provincial Department of Health spokesman Sizwe Kupelo was not available for comment last night.