LETTER | Where are the health inspectors?

The lack of health inspectors in SA is deeply concerning, as it makes one wonder what exactly the government has spent the billions in health funding on. After years of treating patients who have suffered food poisoning from illicit goods bought at spaza shops, this type of intervention should have been made ages ago. I have lived in various townships and have shopped at spaza shops my entire life; yet, I have never once seen a health inspector before.

Where are these 457 health inspectors in Gauteng? Are government officials gallivanting all over our townships in state cars but never doing their jobs? The government must expedite the deployment of health inspectors, and, most importantly, they must ensure they achieve their mandate of protecting citizens from harmful foods. – Tisetso Tsukudu, Johannesburg