A South African national working in Bulawayo was airlifted back to his home country on Monday after falling seriously ill and reportedly failing to receive the urgent medical care he needed in Zimbabwe.
According to a statement posted by the Limpopo Provincial Government on X (formerly Twitter), the unnamed patient was first transported by road from Bulawayo to Beitbridge, a journey of over 280 kilometres, before being flown by helicopter to Limpopo province.
Upon arrival, the patient was received by Limpopo Premier Dr Phophi Ramathuba and the province’s Health MEC, Dieketseng Mashego.
Photographs released by provincial authorities show the stretchered patient being received by the two officials at the landing site.
However, critics on social media have questioned why the Premier and MEC, such high-ranking government officials, were present to receive a single patient.
Many wondered what was so exceptional about this particular patient that warranted the attention of the provincial leadership.
“The patient could not receive the necessary medical treatment when he fell ill in Bulawayo,” the Limpopo Government said.
The incident has reignited the ongoing debate over cross-border healthcare pressures between Zimbabwe and South Africa, particularly the strain placed on South African public hospitals by foreign nationals.
In recent years, Zimbabwean citizens have increasingly sought free medical treatment in South African public institutions—a point of growing political and public contention.
Just a few days ago, a pregnant Zimbabwean woman was publicly humiliated and chased away from Kalafong Hospital in Pretoria West by a group of South African women, who accused her of burdening the healthcare system.
A video of the confrontation went viral, drawing widespread condemnation and sparking renewed discussion about healthcare access and xenophobia.
The women, seen in the video shouting at the expectant mother, claimed that Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government does not compensate South Africa for the medical services used by its nationals.
This issue first gained international attention in August 2022, when then-Limpopo Health MEC Dr Phophi Ramathuba came under fire for berating a Zimbabwean patient at Bela Bela Hospital.
In the widely circulated video, Ramathuba told the patient that healthcare was the responsibility of Zimbabwe’s government and criticised the growing presence of foreign nationals in South Africa’s healthcare system.
She defended her comments by arguing that the influx of patients from neighbouring countries places unsustainable pressure on local hospitals and provincial health budgets.
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