The Eastern Cape department of health has appointed a new CEO for Fort England Psychiatric Hospital in Grahamstown despite its boss, who has been reassigned, seeking an interdict to stop his removal.
In court papers filed by Dr Roger Walsh at the Port Elizabeth Labour Court, he accuses the health department’s top management of bowing to what he claims are the unlawful demands of unions, breaking the law and ignoring investigative reports.
The case is set to be heard on October 18.
Walsh claims that the department “unlawfully capitulated” to various trade union members who sought to oust him as the CEO of the hospital.
However, despite his court bid, the department was making arrangements to introduce a new CEO to staff at the hospital on Monday.
The department insists that the CEO post has been vacant for some time after Walsh’s reassignment, and that the court case revolved around Walsh challenging the process followed to reassign him.
Fort England is a high-security facility looking after 300 patients with mental health disorders.
It also houses a national maximum security unit, looking after dangerous and difficult state patients.
It is the only hospital in the country where mental assessments of patients accused of sexual violence are made.
Walsh was appointed as the hospital’s CEO in October 2013 but shortly afterwards several trade unions embarked on industrial action, demanding that he be removed.
According to the papers before the court, this was triggered by measures Walsh put in place to address, among other things, irregular leave and staff members running businesses from the hospital.
After years of union demands, the department tried to transfer Walsh to its head office in Bhisho as the director of forensic services.
On Friday, the deputy director for mental health services in the province, Brian Nzima, wrote to Fort England management, saying officials would be bringing the new CEO around for introduction on Monday.
Health department spokesperson Lwandile Sicwetsha maintained that the case brought to court by Walsh was challenging the process followed to reassign him and not the correctness of the decision.
“This transfer appointment is intended to fill the vacancy at the hospital, which has been vacant for some time.”
He did not name the woman CEO, but Sicwetsha said she was transferred from Komani Hospital in Queenstown to Fort England with immediate effect.
Komani Hospital was one of the hospitals that scored the highest marks in a national assessment by the Health Ombudsman of public health facilities.
Sicwetsha said the post had been advertised twice before but after no suitable candidate was found, the department decided on an internal transfer.
Walsh’s lawyer, Justin Powers, said he was taking the issue up with the department.
“If the letter at face value is correct, then it is highly irregular as the [department] is well aware of the fact that the court case in the PE Labour Court remains unresolved, and as such the department cannot appoint a new CEO until this case is completed.”