KARACHI: Pakistan's health minister on Tuesday denied social media claims of Rs10 billion in coronavirus vaccine procurement corruption, saying a prime minister's inquiry committee found no financial loss to the government and blamed a border health agency for violating procurement rules.
Speaking at a press conference, Federal Health Minister Mustafa Kamal said the inquiry committee held Border Health Services responsible for forming its own procurement committee on June 10, an act he called a "complete violation of the laws", and for keeping the Ministry of Health uninformed. He said the prime minister was making the committee's report public and publishing it on the ministry's website.
Kamal said the entire matter involves Rs183 million held in a National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) account, dismissing the Rs10 billion figure as baseless and absent from the inquiry's findings. He said the government has suffered no loss in the case.
The minister said a company had approached the court over the matter, and that the Ministry of Health did not interfere with arrests by the Federal Investigation Agency. He said a paid campaign had been run on social media regarding the case.
Kamal, who leads the MQM party, said he would continue advocating for new provinces and strengthening his party regardless of any backlash against him.
The controversy centers on a five-year contract for meningococcal and influenza vaccines for Hajj and Umrah pilgrims and overseas workers. The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has alleged that the contract was awarded to a single bidder, Pharma Connect, without a market survey or comparative price assessment, estimating projected excess expenditure of approximately Rs2.445 billion.
An Islamabad court granted the FIA seven-day physical remand of three suspects in October, including Border Health Services director Dr. Abid Hussain Shah and former director Pradeep Kumar.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif ordered a five-member inquiry committee headed by the Cabinet Secretary in October, with members including the Intelligence Bureau director general, the DRAP chief executive, and the PPRA managing director.
According to reports, the inquiry found BHS officials created parallel committees to bypass federal oversight, and the ministry subsequently abolished the BHS vaccination setup and announced a new tender within a month .
Pilgrims were directed to arrange mandatory vaccinations through travel agents in the interim.
Kamal said the vaccine's actual price was cited as Rs1,300, while the Ministry of Religious Affairs had purchased vaccines at approximately Rs2,290 last year. He said the funds collected from citizens remain secure in the NADRA account and no payment has been released to any company.
