Acting upon the unchecked irregularities in Sindh health department, Sindh chief minister Syed Murad Ali Shah on Tuesday has asked minister health to remove all the doctors working as project directors of different projects. "It was quite surprising for me that medical professionals are assigned on administration jobs," the chief minister expressed dismay while reviewing health department's uplift schemes at CM House.
Murad directed the health minister and secretary to put up proposal for removing them. "This is not their job - their job is to serve ailing people of the province and let them do their work."
Minister Health Dr Sikandar Mendhro briefed the chief minister that that there was a Rs 14 billion development portfolio of health department. He added that over all there were 146, including 89 ongoing scheme of Rs 14 billion, of them Rs 5245.374 million have been released against which expenditures stand at Rs 1677.873 million. Giving the beak up of the schemes, secretary Health Fazal Pechuho said that there were 22 schemes of Rs 2154.94 million prioritised to complete them by the end of this financial year. The finance department has released Rs 2154.920 million and against which Rs 252.774 million have been utilised and the remaining amount would also be released shortly.
He said that there were 65 other schemes of Rs 6985.331 million against which Rs 3680.677 have been released while the expenditures are Rs 1396.724 million. Apart from it there are two foreign funded schemes with a Rs 228.499 million against which the government has released Rs 66.765 million and the expenditures are Rs 28.375 million. Mr Pechuho said that there are also 57 new schemes of Rs 4631.250 million against which Rs 21.250 million have been release. The new schemes are in approving phase, therefore there was no expenditures on them.
The chief minister expressed his displeasure when he was informed about the slow progress of six schemes of Karachi . Syed Murad Ali Shah categorically said that he was not happy with the development endeavour of the health department. "I would take strict action if the concerned officers of health department failed to make their direction correct," he warned.
He left the meeting incomplete and convened them meeting again tomorrow morning at 8 am to review their development work. The meeting was attended by Health Minister Dr Sikandar Mendhro, Chief Secretary Rizwan Memon, Additional chief Secretary (Dev) M. Waseem, Secretary Health Fazal Pechuho, Principal Secretary to CM Naveed Kamran Baloch, Secretary Finance Hassan Naqvi and other concerned officers.