Cape Town – Defence and Military Veterans Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula yesterday visited various military units and bases in the province to assess the Covid-19 state of readiness of SANDF facilities.
During the visit, Mapisa-Nqakula focused on facilities where recruits were undergoing training to make sure that all health requirements and protocols were in place to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic.
“The requirements that must be met are to make sure that the equipment and medical support meet the needs of the members and that
the required quarantine and isolation facilities are available and
equipped,” the department said.
“This is to ensure that members of the SANDF are healthy and ready to be deployed to assist other government departments during this pandemic.”
Mapisa-Nqakula visited the SA Navy facilities in Simon’s Town and Gordon’s Bay and the Military Academy in Saldanha. Last week, Mapisa-Nqakula visited an Infantry School in Oudtshoorn and Air Force Base Hoedspruit in Limpopo.
A mass screening and testing as identified by the Department of Health was being conducted by the South African Military Health Service (SAMHS) as part of targeted operations on a seven-day rotation in each of the targeted areas.
These targeted operations have been conducted in the Bonteheuwel community at a centre set up at the Metropolitan Sports Field. Another testing site has been identified in Khayelitsha Site B where screening commenced yesterday.
More than 708 members of the SANDF have been deployed in the province since the lockdown in support of police.
Soldiers are deployed in the Cape Metro daily in Blue Downs, Cape Town, Khayelitsha, Milnerton, Mitchells Plain, Nyanga, Tygerberg, Wynberg, Faure SAPS Base, the N1, N2 and R300.