QUETTA: The Balochistan Assembly’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has voiced its displeasure with the health department for not using Rs3 billion from the budget, which was returned to the finance department without being used.
During a meeting that was presided over by its chairman, Asghar Ali Tareen, the committee looked at the provincial health department’s accounts and noticed that a lot of money that was set aside for the fiscal years 2021 and 2022 were not used.
The return of these funds to the finance department was criticized as a serious injustice to the province’s citizens and as evidence of senior health officials’ inefficiency. It demonstrates the carelessness of officials at the health department, “Mr. Tareen stated, averting that severe action would be taken in the event that such mismanagement occurred again.
The appropriation accounts for FY22 and the health department’s audit paras for 2022-23 were reviewed by the PAC. Members Fazal Qadir Mandokhail and Rahmat Saleh Baloch, in addition to other senior officials, attended the meeting. In light of previous requests for an additional Rs5 billion, they lamented the department’s inability to use the funds.
Orders ensuring that medicines are delivered to all hospitals on time The Rs3 billion that was not spent was cited as a clear sign of incompetence, denying citizens access to essential healthcare services. The members of the PAC talked about how hospitals don’t have enough medicines that can save lives, which causes deaths that could have been avoided. They also said that oxygen plants that don’t work make the problem worse and waste public money.
Since the Bolan Medical College (BMC) Hospital serves low-income communities and frequently experiences oxygen shortages, the PAC instructed the administration to immediately upgrade its oxygen plant.
The committee stated that it would advocate for additional funding from the chief minister and directed the health department to ensure that all hospitals received medicines on time.
Additionally, the PAC expressed concern regarding the improper payment of staff allowances and requested a thorough investigation within 15 days. They also talked about corruption, specifically the overpriced purchase of ambulances during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The committee emphasized that all foreign donations made for the benefit of the public would be audited. It expressed concern regarding the small amounts of Rs957.354 million that were taken out of the accountant general’s office on the final day of the fiscal year. With the warning that failing to provide a satisfactory explanation could result in a referral to the anti-corruption department, the PAC requested an investigation into this matter within fifteen days.
