Daily Times

The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has exposed massive corruption in the provincial Health Department’s medicine procurement. Officials embezzled Rs1.25 billion during the 2023-24 fiscal year, prompting NAB to launch a formal investigation. The inquiry revealed that funds meant for essential medicines were misused, leading to significant financial losses.

Investigators found that over Rs4 billion was paid to 50 companies for medicine supplies. Shockingly, 15 of these companies received more than Rs3 billion. Many payments were made before the medicines were even delivered, raising serious concerns about fraudulent transactions and mismanagement.

Further scrutiny showed that several delivery challans issued by the Director General of Health were fake. This manipulation resulted in medicines not reaching hospitals, yet the payments were processed. The fraudulent activities caused a direct loss of Rs1.25 billion to the national exchequer, worsening healthcare challenges in the province.

In response, NAB Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has escalated the matter to a full-fledged investigation. Authorities are now working to hold those responsible accountable and recover the lost public funds.