The federal Finance Ministry has refused the Rs federal Health Ministry the Rs 11 billion supplementary grant it demanded for the ’smooth running’ of its hospitals, in a letter which said that it had been forbidden to do so by the IMF except in the event of some natural disaster or emergency. That the supplementary grant has been refused, means that five federal government hospitals, as well as the federally funded Sh Zayed Hospital in Lahore, are in danger of shutting down, as well as the federal government’s various dispensaries, rural health centres and other institutes, such as those producing vaccines. The Health Ministry’s financial management skills are certainly questionable. A supplementary grant this early in the year, and for keeping its institutions running, indicates that it is all at sixes and sevens, and that the caretqaker Health Minister has not been very good at the budgeting required. The outgoing government did pass a budget, but it seems that if the Health Ministry had been shortchanged, the caretaker Finance Minister should have intervened to ensure that some balance was restored, even if it meant offending the IMF. It is another matter that if the IMF is offended, it should take over the functions of the Finance Ministry, and take responsibility for whatever is being done in its name.
It almost seems that the Finance Ministry is using the IMF as a bogeyman to refuse requests for money. It may be remembered that the IMF was mentioned as one barrier to the release of money for the holding of elections, leaving the IMF sc rambling to issue strident denials. This latest claim by the Finance Ministry comes at a time when an IMF mission is still in Pakistan holding talks. Though the staff-level agreement has been reached, this latest attempt by the government to shift blame onto the IMF cannot go down well.
There is clearly a need to ensure that these institutions keep operating, for they provide medical care to those who are most in need of free medical care. PIMS not only has 1000 doctors and 2000 beds for patients who visit daily, but also has a college and a school for paramedics. Sheikh Zayed Hospital in Lahore has a medical college attached. It is not just hospitals that will shut down. At the same time, unless the officials responsible are identified and punished, future misdemeanours will keep on being committed, At bottom, though, the caretaker government already sees the end of its tenure, and will not accept responsibility. Then who will?
