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Acting President Mphoko

Paidamoyo Chipunza Senior Health Reporter
About 1 000 disadvantaged patients from Manicaland Province suffering from various ailments have received medical treatment from a visiting team of Indian doctors.

The team comprising gynaecologists, eye surgeons, general surgeons, orthopaedics, dental surgeons and volunteers performed 43 gynaecological surgeries, 56 general surgeries, 25 orthopaedic surgeries, 23 eye surgeries and 781 dental surgeries since its arrival in the country on Sunday last week.

Addressing the Indian team’s representatives during a courtesy call at his offices yesterday, Acting President Phelekezela Mphoko expressed gratitude at the gesture.

“I cannot interpret the feelings of the people who were treated,” he said. “Sanctions have affected innocent people, but this gesture has proved that there are no boundaries to humanity.”

Acting President Mphoko said India was doing very well not only in the medical field, but also in a number of other areas like mining.

ICT, Postal and Courier Services Minister Cde Supa Mandiwanzira, who is also Member of Parliament for Nyanga North which benefited from the free surgical operations acknowledged the swift response by Rotary International to the plea for medical assistance in Manicaland.

“I would like to express my deep appreciation to the Rotarians for an amazing response to our appeal for assistance and we certainly hope that they will continue to come back and assist our people,” he said.

One of the team leaders, Dr Rajiv Pradhan, said they could have performed more operations if they had started work on the scheduled date.

The team had to wait for two days before starting operations because some of the equipment and medicines were held by the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority at the Harare International Airport.

There were also some bureaucracies with the Medicines Control Authority of Zimbabwe.

The Indian doctors offered Acting President Mphoko to identify 10 children with heart problems for treatment in India at no cost.

The team is expected to finish its medical camp today.