Drugs funds: Health ministry, NMS in sh6b dispute

By Moses Walubiri

Ministry of Health (MoH) and the National Medical Stores (NMS) are embroiled in a sh6.2b dispute in unpaid money for supplied drugs, the Public Accounts Committee heard.

The dispute is part of a string of audit queries raised in the Auditor General’s report for the financial year ending June 2010.

In the audit, a spate of questionable transactions in the year under review at MoH is exposed.

MPs heard that the ministry of health had put its indebtedness to NMS at sh137.4m instead of sh4.1b, according to available documentary evidence. 

The figure was later adjusted to sh6.2b as, according to MoH permanent Secretary, Dr. Asuman Lukwago, more evidence of non-payment of drugs was adduced. 

Health ministry’s accountant, Ponsiano Nyeko said the problem has been documentation between MoH and NMS.

“We have written to NMS to provide documentation which has not been entirely forthcoming. At the moment, our internal audit is reconciling these figures,” he said.

Dr. Lukwago told MPs that MoH has not failed to pay NMS, but has to carry out due diligence in way of verifying claims against it before any payment is made.

At the time the debt accumulated three years ago, the health ministry controlled 70% of the budget for procuring drugs while NMS took care of 30%. This was at a time when MoH used to pay NMS for procuring drugs.

However, a government policy shift in the procurement of drugs has since seen NMS wholly given the mandate to procure drugs.

Although it is a self-accounting body with a separate vote of account, NMS is one of the over 20 autonomous government agencies supervised by MoH. 

Meanwhile, MPs have ordered MoH to recover a total of sh80.8m advanced to its staff without proper accountability.

This was part of sh555m advanced to different MoH staff for a range of activities, of which sh474.9m has been accounted for.

One of those who have failed to account for the money, Dr. Kamba Baleke has since been sacked by the Health Service Commission.

This was after he was convicted for failure to account for money meant for an earlier project.

MPs have given MoH a one month ultimatum to recover the sh80m advanced to Dr. Issa Makumbi, Dr. Kamba, Hafisa Lukwata and Tom Lutalo.

MPs Eddie Kwizera, Kasiano Wadri and Maxwell Akora noted that the failure to account for the money in 60 days is in contravention of the Public Finance and Accountability Act, 2003.

The 60-day deadline to submit accountability in public expenditure is meant to forestall possible falsification of documents and loss of funds.