By SILUMESI MALUMO
Senoir government offficials are misinforming President Hakainde Hichilema about the availability of drugs.
A particular Government officer has been accused of displaying boxes of drugs and syringes to paint a picture that there is medicine in hospitals when in fact not, Resident Doctors Association president Dr Brian Sampa has said.
Dr Sampa said it was more disheartening that the officials had the gut to misinform even the President about the availability of medicines in the country.
He said in an interview that a named government official paraded some health officials in his propaganda to mislead the nation that the drugs were available in hospitals when not.
Dr Sampa said hospitals have completely nothing unlike what was being portrayed by government officials.
He said government should desist from such propaganda and procure medicines to save lives.
“There is nothing political about buying drugs, people are dying. Cry my beloved Zambia, propaganda before life. So it has now reached a stage were some senior government official goes to a facility with some media after instructing that they stage some drugs and two boxes of syringes just to paint the picture that there are drugs in hospitals?
Imagine telling people to speak in front of the camera that the drugs are there. Some morally upright health workers refused to be paraded to lie to the people about drugs when there are no drugs,” Dr Sampa said.
He added, “Let’s do the right thing. Drugs should be bought that’s the only way they will be found in the facilities. Money was released for drugs and we wonder why they are not procuring medicines,” Dr Sampa said.
On Tuesday, the Minisrty of Health announced that the audit of the supply chain for drugs and other medical supplies was completed and the procured medicines had started coming into the country.
Ministry of Health spokesperson, Dr Able Kabalo said the process of scrutinising the supply chain had been completed and drugs started arriving in the country last week.
“The audit of the supply chain is completed now and that is why last week we even started receiving some supplies of medicines which will be dispatched to the provinces next week,” he said.
Dr. Kabalo said the ministry was unlocking the supply chain and medical supplies have started arriving through the Zambia Medicines and Medical Supplies.
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