Harare City Council said that it will not fire striking nurses despite a government directive to dismiss them.
This was revealed by Councilor Denford Ngadziore – who is a member of the Human Resources and General Purposes Committee – during an interview with Zim Morning Post. He said:
It doesn’t make sense to fire these nurses since they are all raising genuine concerns. So we are going to sit as a committee and map a way forward, but we are not going to fire them.
We are appealing to our nurses to drop some of their demands; we can meet halfway. We are also being affected by the ailing economy, but we are committed to meet some of their demands.
On Tuesday, Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister, Monica Mutsvangwa told a post-cabinet media briefing that the strike action by nurses was illegal, hence, the government had directed Council to “commence disciplinary action”.
Mutsvangwa also revealed that only 35 out of the expected 105 nurses turned up for duty at the five polyclinics and one hospital in Harare, thus, worsening an already precarious health crisis in the country.