Anger at Libyan doctors is misplaced
The mysterious rules of rugby
AS A citizen of Kwazulunatal, I read with great distress reports in the press and electronic media of this province’s failing health care system.
NGOS and medical advocacy groups have expressed concerns at the reluctance of the KZN Department of Health (DOH) and its officials to engage them.
Among the many issues they have raised are: the disastrous and expensive training of local doctors in Cuba, the long hours (30 or more in a stretch) that junior doctors are compelled to work, the loss of highly qualified medical staff from state hospitals, the appalling (and still deteriorating) conditions of the forensic pathology services and state mortuaries and unqualified staff.
There are allegations of procurement irregularities with regard to goods and services and increasing time spent by clinicians defending litigation cases for negligence and malpractice rather than attending to patients, as well as complaints about the deaths of cancer patients whose quality of life could be improved were the radiotherapy equipment not dysfunctional.
A recent article (Sunday Tribune, April 30) conveys the fury of doctors at the employment of Libyan doctors ahead of locals, working without pay and exploited for their cheap labour.
Pointing fingers at the Libyan doctors who simply reap the benefits of their government’s policies is misplaced. Basic health care services have been undermined by the misappropriation of funds, official indifference, collusion and corruption. The failure by the DOH in KZN to engage confirms government indifference to the suffering and deaths of patients and the failure of the DOH to meet constitutional imperatives to provide quality health care.
Those we entrust as custodians of our health care have failed to deliver. They have failed to implement their commitments to the principles of good governance, human rights and justice.
These officials act unlawfully in violation of the constitution and must be sued personally, criminally charged and held directly accountable for the harm they cause. Hopefully, our brothers from Libya will stand with local doctors in a show of solidarity against KZN’S DOH.
Dr MA SATHAR Essenwood
LAST Saturday’s tries by Coenie Oosthuizen and Thomas “The Tank” du Toit were the best of the weekend, if not the season. Luckily, TT looked up in time to avoid bending the upright.
There are a number of on-field occurrences that I find difficult to comprehend.
Dummy running: In my opinion, dummy running is obstruction as it provides protection for the ball-carrier and prevents the defending team from tackling.
This could explain the number of late tackles or incidents of players tackling the man without the ball. A disadvantage of dummy running is that it channels play towards the sideline.
In front of the kicker: At almost every kick-off there is at least one man over the centre line before the ball is kicked.
Hooker: why have one? I assume that the rule states that the ball must be thrown in straight and between the two front rows? Yet we watch the ball being thrown into the second row.
Scrum collapses: Unless a referee has played in the tight five, he invariably has no idea who’s doing what to whom when the scrum collapses or wheels.
Some of the decisions are dreadful and result in penalties that can change the result.
Unless a ref is 100% sure who is responsible for a collapsed/ wheeled scrum, he should reset or, at worst, award a short-arm penalty.
Cleaning out in the scrum: It has to happen, but soon a player is going to be seriously injured, and only then will this American Footballism be reviewed and banned.
In the Lions v Sharks game, a try was disallowed because a defender who had dived into the maul was pulled by the neck.
Some of the players are huge and it is impossible for a defender to get his arms around their chests. I’m obviously biased, but, in my opinion, the standard of refereeing cost us that game.
One also sees players not involved in the maul being cleaned out and held on to, yet the officials ignore it. No wonder tempers flare. BRUCE ROOKEN-SMITH
Merrivale