Ray Nkosi | Calls for Health and Child Care minister David Parirenyatwa to resign over incompetence in running the health ministry have fallen on deaf ears.

The doctors strike enters its third week with Zimbabwe National Army doctors on standby to rescue the fast deteriorating situation in the country’s hospitals. Striking doctors have refused calls by President Emmerson Mnangagwa to return to work and have instead issued a stinging statement baying for Parirenyatwa’s head.

“Negotiations are being done in bad faith, with gross misrepresentation of facts by the ministry and minister. The reason why we have reached this critical point is that we accepted promises before from the same minister and ministry since 2014 and these continue to be broken.

“The ministry continues to threaten our members in an attempt to coerce them back to work. If they were genuinely working on these issues, why then threaten members,” the statement said.

Parirenyatwa in an interview with the Standard failed to disclose the casualties or the number of patients affected by the doctors strike, he however acknowledged the shortage of drugs in the hospitals and also discloses the shocking ratio of 200 000 people per one doctor.

“We have put that on alert so that we can keep our emergency services running. We have asked some doctors from the uniformed services to be on standby, but it is not a sustainable position.”

“We should be able to have our doctors back at work as a matter of urgency,” said Parirenyatwa.