Own Correspondent|Harare Mayor Councillor Hebert Gomba has dismissed reports by the Makamba family that the Harare City Council run Wilkins Hospital is not ready to handle COVID-19 cases, HealthTimes reports.

MDC president Nelson Chamisa visited the Wilkins Hospital in Harare last week and also said he was impressed by the state of preparedness at the Council-owned facility, but the Makamba family have narrated shocking details which reveal that the facility is nothing more than a death trap.

Speaking to a Zimbabwean news website Health Times, Harare mayor Herbert Gomba said Wilkins Hospital was ready to handle coronavirus patients.

“Residents must know we have measures to mitigate the effects of the corona pandemic, recruited 60 environmental officers on contract, made $10 million ready for use, have testing kits, protective clothes and our staff to work long hours,”

Early this week, Gomba said council was mobilising $10 million to increase the capacity of Wilkins Hospital to accommodate between 100 and 500 patients in light of the coronavirus cases in Zimbabwe.

“Wilkins Hospital is being upgraded and we are looking to accommodate 100 to 500 patients on its completion.

“We are looking at harnessing resources to the tune of $10 million to make sure that every person in the suburbs is made aware of the consequences of this deadly disease.

Watch Chamisa visiting the hospital a week before Mukamba was admitted.