It is a well-known fact that communication is not one of the strongest points of government departments throughout the world.
It is a well-known fact that communication is not one of the strongest points of government departments throughout the world.
So, it is not surprising that the North West health department has been found lacking in this aspect, choosing rather to be obstructive than to be candid about an issue that is damaging its image.
At issue is the unexplained purpose of a workshop sponsored by the department held at a posh lodge in Mafikeng last year, to which scores of young, jobless women were invited under the pretext of being trained as peer educators.
Three women, who attended what turned out to be a workshop to teach participants how to enter the oldest profession in the world, have since slapped the department with letters from their lawyers.
Left with egg on its face following angry letters from the women's lawyers, the department has surprisingly clammed up, refusing to be drawn into divulging its reasons for organising the workshop.
By keeping mum, the health authorities obviously hope the matter will simply die away and disappear from the public domain. Not so, especially when it appears no one wants to take responsibility for the waste of taxpayers' money on such a shady project.
We urge Premier Edna Molewa to force the department to come clean on this embarrassing episode.
Come clean on this shady event
It is a well-known fact that communication is not one of the strongest points of government departments throughout the world.
It is a well-known fact that communication is not one of the strongest points of government departments throughout the world.
So, it is not surprising that the North West health department has been found lacking in this aspect, choosing rather to be obstructive than to be candid about an issue that is damaging its image.
At issue is the unexplained purpose of a workshop sponsored by the department held at a posh lodge in Mafikeng last year, to which scores of young, jobless women were invited under the pretext of being trained as peer educators.
Three women, who attended what turned out to be a workshop to teach participants how to enter the oldest profession in the world, have since slapped the department with letters from their lawyers.
Left with egg on its face following angry letters from the women's lawyers, the department has surprisingly clammed up, refusing to be drawn into divulging its reasons for organising the workshop.
By keeping mum, the health authorities obviously hope the matter will simply die away and disappear from the public domain. Not so, especially when it appears no one wants to take responsibility for the waste of taxpayers' money on such a shady project.
We urge Premier Edna Molewa to force the department to come clean on this embarrassing episode.