Frantic efforts to stem the Covid-19 third wave tsunami in Gauteng are being thwarted by a cash crunch, with government calling on the private sector to help its strained healthcare system.

The province has come under attack for its failure to plan for the deadly third wave, which has brought unprecedented levels of infections amid claims of staff shortages and poor enforcement of Covid-19 regulations.

SA’s third wave is on course to surpass the peak of the second wave after the arrival of a new variant of the infection, acting health minister Mmamoloko Kubayi said on Saturday.

The money snag follows several Covid-19 related scandals in Gauteng last year, including irregular payments of millions of rand for dodgy PPE contracts and school sanitation. These contracts are under investigation by the Special Investigating Unit, which hopes to get some of the millions back. …more