DMCH purchase stymied by graft
ACC sues 7 staff, 10 drug store owners for misappropriating Tk 6.68cr
Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) authorities have jacked up eight times the price of an ampoule of Heparin meant for free distribution.
The authorities have shown each ampoule at Tk 2090 instead of the market price of Tk 280 to misappropriate the money, revealed an investigation by the Anti-corruption Commission (ACC).
Physicians use Heparin injection to prevent patients' blood from clotting.
In between July 2009 and June 2010, a group of DMCH staff including its former director Brig Gen Bazle Qader purchased 7,409 ampoules of the drug causing a loss of over Tk 1.34 crore to the state coffers.
And that is not all. A huge amount of money was misappropriated in the process of buying almost anything such as glossy printing paper or a simple needle for the hospital.
During that period, seven DMCH staff in collaboration with a Public Works Department official and 10 private drug store owners misappropriated over Tk 6.68 crore, prompting the anti-graft body to file 10 cases against them yesterday.
The probe has found the amount of misappropriated money is several times higher than the amount actually spent on medicine and equipment, forcing the mostly poor DMCH patients to purchase about 20 percent of their required drug.
DMCH directors had usually blamed lack of manpower and budget for its failure to ensure standard healthcare free of cost.
It is now up to the health ministry and the health directorate to take action against the accused still serving at the hospital, said Brig Gen Shahidul Hoque Mallik, incumbent director of DMCH.
"Still the allegations are to be proved true. Of course you have to be accountable if you don't follow the government procurement rules properly," he added.
The other accused DMCH staff are its former deputy director Foyzullah, senior lecturer of practical pharmacy Moshiur Rahman, Deputy Director Kazi Enamul Kabir, Assistant Prof Atiar Rahman, social welfare officer Sayeeda Akhter and accountant Nazrul Islam.
Besides, Satinath Boshak, sub-divisional engineer of the Public Works Department, has been sued for the graft.
The accused private drug stores are M/S MS Enterprise, Bhuiyan Medical Hall, HN Surgical, Medicom International, M/S Bhuiyan Corporation, Habib Corporation, M/S SA Surgical, KK Trade International, M/S Constad Trade View and M/S Zakia Enterprise. The proprietors of these shops have been accused in the cases.
All the purchases were made violating the public procurement rules.
THE CASES
ACC Assistant Director Syed Tahsinul Haque filed the cases with Shahbagh Police Station.
Besides stating the misappropriation of money in purchase of Heparin, the first case also alleged that the accused purchased 100 Haneulux Blue bulb at Tk 19,900 each, though the market price is Tk 5,000.
A total of 28,400 needles having market value of Tk 75 per piece were bought at Tk 176, mentioned the second case statement.
The authorities bought 2448 packets of high glossy printing paper at Tk 4,900 each, while the market price is Tk 945, according to the third case statement.
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