Imran asks government to refrain from criticising SKMCH for political mileage

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chairman Imran Khan has requested the government to refrain from fabricating allegations against Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre (SKMCH) or it should take action against the hospital after conducting an investigation. He was addressing a SKMCH social responsibility awards ceremony here on Saturday. He was bemused by the allegations levelled against the hospital by the N-League ministers. It is unfortunate that his political opponents are campaigning against an institute that treats poor cancer patients. "Even during a war, medical facilities are not targeted," he added.
Imran continued that if the government feels there are discrepancies in the hospital then it should be investigated, rather than fabricating allegations; it is a government's job to check irregularities and it has the resources do so. "If they find the hospital management guilty of misappropriating the charity money, then they should throw Imran Khan in a jail," he added.
He said that neither they investigate the allegations nor they build hospitals to facilitate a common man. "The ruling party has not even built a high-class hospital to treat 'royal families' and hence their leaders go abroad for treatment," he added.
He requested the government not to damage an institution that caters the needs of poor people for political mileage. He also criticized the Punjab government for creating hurdles in the approval of SKMCH Lahore extension plan. He disclosed that the Lahore Development Authority is not approving the building plan on one pretext or other. "Is this a sugar mill," he questioned.
Talking about the contribution to the hospital, he praised the nation for making a collective effort to build and run a cancer hospital of a world class. He said that it is a challenging project to operate in a third world country. "The hospital bears the cost of 75 percent of its patients and hence the hospital faces a deficit of Rs 5 billion each year, and this gap is filled by the donation," he added.
Outlining future plans, he said that they are building a cancer hospital in Karachi, which will be bigger than the one in Lahore and Peshawar. "Moreover, they are also the expanding the hospital in Lahore," he added. Later, Imran distributed awards among contributors belonging to the corporate sector and business community. They contributed Rs 400 million to Shaukat Khanum last year.