STOP THE ROT
…Silumbe urges health ministry to investigate the administration of expired renal dialysis fluids and hold all those responsible accountable
By Mast Reporter
THE revelations in the latest Auditor General’s report must be troubling and heartbreaking for most Zambians, and the leadership must act now to stop the rot at the Ministry of Health, Leadership Movement (LM) president Dr Richard Silumbe has said.
Commenting on the revelation that 364 packs of expired renal dialysis fluids valued at K176, 176 were administered to patients at the University Teaching Hospital (UTH) Adult Hospital and Livingstone Teaching Hospital, Dr Silumbe said Zambians were no longer safe in their own country if health institutions could give patients expired medication.
“I have not slept since the day the report was made public; I am troubled and frightened to see how broken the country’s health system has become to administer expired drugs to patients. This is not only strange but a way to kill people,” he said.
Dr Silumbe said people behind what he described as a deadly scheme must be held accountable.
He said there should be no sacrificial lamb in an effort to save the people of Zambia.
“This is the worst damage this government has done to the people of Zambia. Sadly, nobody in this government seems to care about that; nobody is willing to take to task those behind this worthless and inhumane act,” he said.
Dr Silumbe demanded a thorough investigation and that those found wanting be brought to book to answer for the transgressions committed against humanity.
He said the investigations should also be extended to companies and suppliers to ascertain the level of their participation in wrongdoing.
“This is how heartless this country has become. We have our brothers and sisters dying because they cannot afford the cost of medication yet we have a government and a workforce that keep or procure expired medication at a high cost,” he said.
Dr Silumbe said a serious leader would not sleep and eat comfortably with the revelations at the Ministry of Health.
“This case at the Ministry of Health is a call for a forensic investigation. All the people who were involved are still alive. It is only fair that the details exposed by the Auditor General are not swept under the carpet to protect certain names in this administration, even in the past administration. We need to get to the bottom of this issue to see the extent of the rot at the ministry. This ministry is a cash cow for politically exposed individuals and we need to arrest the situation now before it gets out of hand; otherwise, this government has blood on its hands for all those who took the expired medicines and died later,” he said.
