Bhisho's Department of Local Government to introduce weight loss campaign for employees

01 Feb 2016 | Admin Author

Employees in the Eastern Cape Department of Local Government and Traditional Affairs will soon be chanting the mantra of former top cop Bheki Cele .. Stomachs In .. Chest Out.

The Department will soon be launching what is says will be an adrenaline-charged weight loss contest in the Department, with employees vying for top prizes for the biggest losers.

The three-month competition is being introduced in conjunction wiht the Government Employee Medical Scheme following the screening of about 582 employees as part of its Employee Wellness Programme.

MEC, Mlibo Qoboshiyane, says of those screened, 341 had high cholesterol levels while 121 were obese.

He says the usual Bhisho snack like amagwinya, fizzy drinks, deep fried fish, chips, fatty meat will be binned as employees' will be inspired to dish up healthy eats.

"We have observed departmently that we need to have a programme of that nature, a wellness programme in order to address a number of identified challenges faced by our own workers. There is a high rising number of people who are taking leave because of ill health. As a productive department we need to engage on people checking their statuses." says Qoboshiyane

But, the Democratic Alliance has hit out at the initiative saying government should be developing the minds of employees and not their stomachs.

DA leader in the Bhisho legislature, Bobby Stevenson, says government departments spent more than R87 million on catering in the last financial year while Bhisho spent R95.5 million on staff development.

He says in a province where departments consistently blame capacity problems for poor service delivery, it is scandalous that almost the same amount is spent on catering as on staff development.