Fund health so that people won’t need to consult prophets

Makoni Central legislator David Tekeshe has called on the government to adequately fund the health sector to prevent people from turning to prophets and traditional healers for help.

The outspoken legislator argued that people end up at shrines because when they go to the hospitals there is no medicine and are required to buy from private pharmacies that are expensive.

He said because a lot of people have no money, they are left with no option but to turn to the shrines for help.

Speaking in during debate of the Finance Bill recently, Honourable Tekeshe said the health is not properly financed to carry out its role.

‘’I would like to add my voice to the budget debate. I have participated four times in the budget process but I have noted that ministries like the Ministry of Health are not properly financed.

‘’We just give figures but nothing materialises and even Ministry of Education. These ministries are not benefitting that much especially those in the rural areas who are poor.

‘’Going to the Ministry of Health and Child Care, there are no medicines in the hospitals yet there is a budget allocation to the Ministry. Does this imply that the Minister is just prescribing a budget and not doing what he says he will do?

‘’People end up going to prophets and traditional healers because they cannot afford to go to pharmacies and private doctors where medicines are found.

‘’These are our key ministries, and it is important that the Ministries of Education and Health are funded. If these ministries are not capacitated through financing, then nothing goes well. We plead with the Minister to allocate more,’’ he said.

Although Zimbabwe is signatory to the Abuja Declaration, it has not lived to its signature.

The Abuja Declaration requires that countries allocate 15% of their national budget towards health funding.

However, since the day it signed the declaration, Zimbabwe has never met the target. Various ministers of finance have often complained that there is no enough fiscal legroom to meet the target.