Cuban doctors start work in Limpopo: ‘It is a pleasure to be in Mandela land’

Quarantine everyone says Limpopo Health MEC  after 13 mine workers test positive for Covid-19

The province had, by Tuesday, recorded 96 cases of Covid-19, with the highest numbers at Sekhukhune and Waterberg.

Though the province has low number of cases compared to others, such as Gauteng and the Western Cape, fears abound that the figure will rise exponentially when mining activities resume at Venetia Mine in Musina in the Vhembe District.

Screening and testing

But Ramathuba said the Cuban doctors “will be much more relevant in those areas”.

She dismissed criticism that the factor which kept the number of cases in the province low was the lack of sufficient screening and testing.

However, she added that, although there was a lack of testing facilities in the past, the situation had been resolved through acquiring machines at the Polokwane and Mankweng hospitals.

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She said 4.4 million people had been screened in the province, with 4 125 referred for testing.

A representative of the Cuban doctors, Dr Leandro Gonzales Morihno, said: “It’s a big pleasure to be in Mandela land. 

“We fought apartheid together before. We are going to fight this pandemic together, and this is the only way which Fidel Castro and Mandela have shown us a long time ago.”