(Last Updated on January 24, 2021 by GERALD NCUBE)
HARARE – The Zimbabwe Association of Doctors for Human Rights says they are concerned with the ongoing tensions within the medical sector following statements by government spokesperson Nick Mangwana insinuating that some medical doctors are “medical assassins” who are weaponising the Covid-19 virus to target certain political players.
The statements from Mangwana comes particularly at a time when prominent individuals including top government officials aligned to the ruling Zanu-PF party succumbed to the virus.
Three ministers died in a space of a week due to Covid-19.
Mangwana sparked outrage on Twitter when he was responding to some conversation wrote;
“I followed that. This is what’s leading to the unfortunate conspiracy theory that there are certain political players being eliminated in hospitals by political activists hiding behind medical qualifications.
“In fact not just political players but medical assassins.”
This has led to a statement of concern from the ZADHR as tensions continue to grow.
“The Zimbabwe Association of Doctors for Human Rights(ZADHR) has noted with concern the escalating tensions in the health sector. Of key concern are the following issues;
“The branding of certain medical practitioners as ‘medical assassins’ by a senior government official. The threats of arrests, and deregistration of medical practitioners who alleged to have communicated unethical statements on social media,” part of the statement read.
The Association also advised against the persecution of health care professionals adding that any misconduct should be handled by the regulatory body.
“ZADHR strongly advises against the continuous persecution of health care professionals. Cases of alleged medical misconduct, if any, must always be handled by the appropriate medical regulatory bodies. Across the globe, self-regulation of medical practitioners has been adopted as the standard approach for ensuring adherence to the highest standards of ethical practice in the medical sector,” added ZADHR.
ZADHR further noted that this “persecution” was likely going to destabilise the health sector during a period when the country is battling a pandemic.