Malawian mother blames Operation Dudula for death of her 1-year-old son
A 21-year-old Malawian woman has accused Operation Dudula of preventing her from accessing urgent medical care for her baby, who later died.
Grace Manda says her one-year-old son, Praise Banda, fell gravely ill with diarrhoea and vomiting on 31 July. When she rushed him to Alexandra Clinic in Johannesburg, she was allegedly turned away by people demanding proof of a South African identity document.
“I told them I was from Malawi and only had a passport. They advised me to consult a private doctor or hospital. I pleaded with them to help my son, but they flatly refused,” Manda recalled tearfully.
Later that night, she returned home and sought treatment from a private doctor the next day, who prescribed medication. But by then it was too late. Manda said she woke to find her baby unresponsive. He was declared dead at Edenvale Hospital.
Unable to raise the R22 000 needed to repatriate Praise’s body to Malawi, relatives and friends assisted her to bury him in Soweto on 5 August.
She believes her child would have survived had he received care at the clinic that first day. “His (Ramaphosa’s) intervention will save many lives, including children’s,” she pleaded, calling on President Cyril Ramaphosa to step in.
Dudula denies involvement
Operation Dudula rejected the allegations after the story first aired on Newzroom Afrika. In a statement, the group called the claims “reckless and misleading” and insisted none of its members were stationed at medical facilities on 31 July.
Its president, Zandile Dabula, told News24:
“We prioritise the rule that life comes first. If it’s an emergency, we allow people to go into hospitals. We distance ourselves from the death of the minor. We will wait for further investigations to be completed. However, our investigations have revealed that our members were not at the facility on that day.”
Government responds
The Gauteng Department of Health strongly condemned the obstruction of patients at public healthcare centres. Spokesperson Motalatale Modiba said:
“No community member or structure has the right to prevent others from accessing healthcare. This goes against the Constitution and has dire consequences.”
When News24 visited Alexandra Clinic this week, two staff members alleged that individuals were indeed stationed at the premises daily, turning away non-South Africans without identity documents.
In Parliament, Makhi Feni, chairperson of the Select Committee on Education, Sciences and the Creative Industries, also criticised Operation Dudula’s actions, accusing the group of being on a “crusade” to disrupt health services and even threatening to target schools.
“Operation Dudula’s actions can potentially misrepresent our country and our democracy. South Africa is a country of law and order that should be strictly followed. The actions of Operation Dudula are objectionable and are an unnecessary distraction to the work the government is doing around immigration challenges. People do not just come to South Africa out of free will but for refuge and from hunger,” said Feni.
The Presidency has yet to comment on Manda’s plea
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