The IFP seek suitable clarity from the KZN MEC for Health, Nomagugu Simelane-Zulu on how much has been spent on “Covid-19 influencers programme” where artists have been recruited to market vaccination programme in KwaZulu-Natal.
The IFP would like to commend this move by the department as it will assist alleviate the living conditions of our artists who are currently without jobs, hustling to survive due to constrains presented by Covid-19 pandemic. However, we demand transparency about the budget allocation, selection criteria for this project and their beneficiaries. We would like to advise the department to consider the inclusion of new and young artists, partly because we are in the month of June where we are celebrating our youth.
Moreover, we need assurance that the money will lend on deserving beneficiaries and it will not be red flagged by the Auditor General as irregular fruitless and wasteful expenditure at the end of the financial year.
Above all, the IFP views this as an admission that the KZN Department of Health is not able to get through to the public or do the job that politicians and their taskforces are paid for.
Therefore, as the IFP, we demand the following answers from the KZN MEC for Health, Nomagugu Simelane-Zulu:
- What selection procedure was used to select celebrities such as Dr Gcina Mhlophe?
- How much will be spent to each celebrity?
- Besides Dr Gcina Mhlophe what other celebrities and entertainers that have been recruited?
- How many young upcoming celebrities that have been recruited by the Department?
- Where does the money to recruit celebrities comes from?
The IFP believes that the Department of Health should already have all the tools needed to promote vaccine uptake. It does not need to turn to celebrities to get people to pay attention.
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Contact:
Mrs Ncamisile Nkwanyana, MPL
IFP KZN Provincial Spokesperson for Health,
078 302 3991