KABUL - The Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) has spent above eight million afghanis additional amount purchasing medicines, medical equipment and health products at exorbitant rates for the Afghan-Japan Hospital, Pajhwok Afghan News learned reliably on Monday.
According to available documents, one IV bag, the original price of which is 65 afs, has been purchased for over 260 afs. In comparison with the market price, the total IV bags consumed 4.2 million afs extra.
A bill No. 67, dated April, 2020, the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) purchased 26 types of medicines at the cost of 11 million afs. But some wholesalers and medicine importers put the total price of the medicines at 20,000,744 afs.
These medicines included 4,000 glucose IV drips, 500mg 10pc set, 500 glucose IV drips 500mg 5pc set, 1,000 mix IV drips 500mg with set, 5,000 ringer IV drip 500mg with sets, 10 bags of Etil Alkohel-96, 30 boxes of Alcohol bags, 10,000 Ampol Ciftriaxon, 1,000 disposable thermometers, four stethoscopes and four blood pressure devices.
In addition, 45 cartons of small, medium and large size medical gloves, 200 complete sets of immune kits, 200 disposable immune laboratory coats, 50 cartons of safety paper boxes, 100 boxes for sample delivery, 200 rolls of toilet paper, 500 rolls of large size cleaning paper, 50 immune glasses, 95 pillows, 50 shoe soaks, 50 dustbin, 20 brooms were among the items purchased.
Pajhwok received a number of documents relating to the purchase of medical equipment but Pajhwok chose 26 items for this report and after comparison and collection of price quotations, it was learned that corruption had happened during the transaction.
Ex-director of Afghan-Japan hospital
Dr. Hakim Saleh, former director of the Afghan-Japan Hospital, told Pajhwok that all contracts, including medicines’, oxygen, medical equipment, food and etc had been signed by the MoPH.
The Afghanistan Islamic Medical Association of Afghanistan (AIMA), which was in charge of the Afghan-Japan Hospital in Kabul, said that the management team of the hospital had not been involved in contracting and purchasing process, but the medical equipment, medicines and health products had been provided by MoPH.
MoPH’s view
Pajhwok repeatedly contacted MoPH spokesman Akmal Samsour to provide information but in five days Pajhwok received no response from him.
Questions related to this report were shared five times by Pajhwok reporters and once by deputy spokesperson of MoPH, but Akmal Samsour did not respond.
However, the MoPH spokesman yesterday asked Pajhwok to share documents in hand and the documents were shared with him, but he did not respond. (Pajhwok)