DA alleges misuse of Metro Police after party leaders barred from visiting Newlands clinic

The DA alleged that Metro Police interfered with its officials’ oversight visit to the clinic on Monday.

The DA says it was prevented from carrying out an oversight visit at a Newlands clinic on Monday. Picture: Theo Jeptha African News Agency (ANA)

Published Oct 19, 2021

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DURBAN - The DA in KwaZulu-Natal has accused the eThekwini Municipality’s Metro Police unit and its leadership of allowing itself to be misused to intimidate political opponents.

The party alleged that on Monday more than 20 members of the Metro Police were used to block the party’s leaders from conducting an oversight inspection at the Glen Earle Clinic in Newlands East.

“As part of the Unite, Rebuild and Protect tour, we visited areas in North Durban today with the constituency head Dean Macpherson and DA councillors.

“After receiving numerous reports and complaints from community members about the shoddy services rendered by this clinic, we decided to conduct an oversight inspection,” the DA said.

It said as Francois Rodgers, DA KZN leader, was a member of the provincial legislature and Macpherson was a member of Parliament, they were allowed to conduct these visits.

The party said that after speaking to the clinic management to be allowed in, Metro Police officers were instead deployed to block the party’s officials from entering.

It said 12 Metro Police vehicles with 22 officers arrived to prevent them from doing oversight.

It said it understood that the instruction to prevent party members from entering the clinic, “came from the head of metro police, Steve Middleton, in violation of the Constitution and the Parliamentary prescripts to oversight and accountability.

“It is a disgrace that while communities in eThekwini are under siege from gangsters and criminals, Steve Middleton can allocate police officers to block us from doing the people’s business,” said the DA.

The DA said it would be reporting the incident to the Speaker of the National Assembly and the provincial legislature and demanding that the eThekwini Municipality and metro police be held accountable for violating the Constitution.

The DA says it was prevented from carrying out an oversight visit at a Newlands clinic on Monday. Picture: Theo Jeptha African News Agency (ANA) )

Municipal spokesperson Msawakhe Mayisela said the deployment of Metro Police was not aimed at intimidating the members of the DA but was done solely to maintain law and order in a health facility where the vulnerable are attended to.

He said members of various portfolio committees of the provincial legislature usually communicate beforehand when they want to conduct oversight visits.

“The city always cooperates and attends to any issues that may be of great concern raised by those conducting the visit. It is therefore disturbing to see the DA grasping at straws during this electioneering period to ruin the image of the municipality.”

He said the city subscribes to an open-door policy and welcomes anyone who is willing to conduct an oversight visit but would appreciate being informed of the visit beforehand.

“A clinic is a health facility and provides essential services, and the city has a responsibility of guarding against anything that could distract health personnel.

“The DA can pull these stunts anywhere it wants, but not in a healthcare facility and where the city will be impeded in discharging its constitutional responsibilities,” he said.

THE MERCURY