A major corruption scandal has emerged in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s (K-P) Health Department involving the purchase of medical gloves worth millions of rupees. According to official documents, a large number of these gloves, which were supposed to be delivered to health offices in various districts, are missing.
The scandal revolves around the procurement of gloves valued at Rs 638.3 million. The gloves were meant to be distributed to different regions, including Peshawar, Bajaur, and North Waziristan. However, it was discovered that many of these gloves never reached their intended destinations.
For instance, in Peshawar, the health department paid Rs135.6 million for 6 million gloves, but the local health office claims they never received any of them. Similarly, in Bajaur, Rs67.8 million was spent on gloves, but 3 million gloves are unaccounted for. In North Waziristan, a staggering Rs434.8 million was used to buy gloves, but 19 million gloves are missing from records.
The Health Minister, Qasim Ali Shah, has announced a thorough investigation into the matter, promising to expose any wrongdoing during the caretaker government’s tenure.
This scandal has caused significant concern, as the missing gloves were supposed to be used to protect healthcare workers and patients. The investigation will determine how such a large amount of medical supplies went missing and whether corruption played a role in the disappearance.
This situation has also led to the resignation of K-P’s Minister for Works and Communications, Shakeel Ahmed Khan, who cited widespread corruption in the provincial government as the reason for his departure. The public is now eagerly awaiting the results of the investigation to understand how this happened and who is responsible.
