- Thobeka Jantjies, 52, says she lost the ability to walk after a tooth was removed at Cecilia Makhiwane Hospital in 2002 and has been stuck in bed ever since.
- Jantjies stood outside the Eastern Cape legislature in Bhisho on 13 March 2026 to demand payment and justice for what happened to her.
Thobeka Priscilla Jantjies, 52, says everything changed in 2002 after she had a tooth pulled at Cecilia Makhiwane Hospital in the Eastern Cape. She lost the ability to move and has been stuck in bed ever since.
She cannot walk, eat on her own or look after herself. She wears diapers every day. Her 27-year-old son is her main carer. A neighbour, Ntomboxolo Dayimani, also helps when she can.
On Friday, 13 March 2026, Jantjies went to the Eastern Cape legislature in Bhisho, where the province’s budget speech was taking place. She wants compensation and says she has been waiting more than 24 years.
“It’s been 24 years now laying like this. I am a mother; I have needs; I have children; they are watching their mother suffer, lying in bed, unable to do anything for herself,” she said.
“My wish is to get justice because I am left alone with my kids in this case. I wish for my case to make it to court so that even if I die, I can have peace,” she said.
Dayimani said Jantjies needs a wheelchair or stretcher and regular visits from clinic staff to keep an eye on her high blood pressure and diabetes.
The Eastern Cape Department of Health previously said investigations found no link between the tooth removal and Jantjies’s condition. Her lawyers withdrew the Bhisho High Court case in 2006, saying it had no merit.
Previous reports said the department offered Jantjies R500,000 in 2013 on humanitarian grounds. Her husband had to accept the offer, but he died in 2017. It is unclear whether he accepted.
Jantjies said she never received the money and is considering legal action.
Democratic Alliance shadow MEC for Health Jane Cowley said she will question health MEC Ntandokazi Capa about the case in the provincial legislature.
The department’s spokesperson Siyanda Manana did not respond to Scrolla.Africa.
Pictured above: Thobeka Priscilla Jantjies.
Image source: Supplied
