Simiyu — PRIME Minister Dr Mwigulu Nchemba has directed security organs across the country to conduct monthly investigations into the procurement, distribution and use of medicines in public health facilities amid concerns that patients are being referred to private pharmacies despite official reports showing adequate supplies.
He said information presented to him during visits to different regions indicated that medicine availability had reached 97 per cent in district and regional hospitals and 96 per cent in health centres and dispensaries.
However, patients continued to complain that they were being told to purchase medicines from private pharmacies.
The Prime Minister said the discrepancy raised serious questions about the management and accountability of medicines purchased using public funds. He directed security organs to investigate their procurement, distribution and use and submit monthly reports to him.
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Dr Nchemba issued the directive yesterday while addressing residents at Nyamikoma Primary School grounds in Busega District, Simiyu Region, where he was concluding his working visit to the region.
"If medicines are available in our hospitals and health centres, why are patients being told to buy them elsewhere? Where are the government medicines going, and how are private pharmacies getting them?" he asked.
He further directed security organs to monitor funds allocated for purchasing medicines and establish how the supplies were distributed and utilised, insisting that those found responsible for diversion or mismanagement should face firm action.
"I want security organs to conduct monthly investigations into the procurement, distribution and use of government medicines and submit reports directly to me. Anyone found diverting these supplies or misusing public funds must face firm action," he said.
Dr Nchemba said the government was mindful of the financial difficulties facing lowincome households, many of which struggle to meet the costs of medical treatment, laboratory tests and medicines.
He stressed that public health facilities must ensure medicines purchased using government funds reach the intended beneficiaries instead of forcing patients to incur additional expenses at private pharmacies.
In a related directive, the Prime Minister warned public servants against turning away citizens seeking government services on the grounds that they had not booked appointments, describing the practice as unacceptable.
He said citizens spend considerable time and money travelling to government offices and should not be turned away when the responsible officials are available and expected to serve them.
"Citizens spend a lot of money and time seeking services in public offices. It is therefore wrong for them to arrive and be told to return another day when the responsible officers are at work and are being paid with taxpayers' money. They must be served," he said.
He warned officials who allegedly spend working hours attending to personal matters instead of fulfilling their responsibilities, stressing that public offices must remain accessible to the citizens they are established to serve.
The Prime Minister also issued a stern warning to health workers who demand that relatives of critically ill patients contribute money for ambulance fuel before the patients can be transferred to referral hospitals.
He said those found engaging in the practice would be dismissed from public service rather than merely transferred to other health facilities.
Dr Nchemba said ambulances were government property and their drivers were paid by the government, leaving no justification for demanding fuel contributions from families during medical emergencies.
He directed health facilities to give immediate attention to pregnant women requiring emergency surgery, accident victims and other critically ill patients, insisting that administrative procedures, including registration, should be completed after patients had received urgent medical attention.
On development projects, the Prime Minister said implementation of some road and water projects had slowed over the past one-and-a-half to two years as the government prioritised completing the Julius Nyerere Hydropower Project.
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He explained that electricity demand had exceeded available generation and distribution capacity due to increased consumption in industrial areas, mining operations and other sectors.
The government therefore opted to complete the hydropower project rather than rely on hiring electricity-generating equipment, a decision he said had enabled the country to achieve a power surplus.
Following the project's completion, he said, the government had revised its financing arrangements for development programmes by directing funds to sector-specific accounts, including the Road Fund and accounts serving the water, education and health sectors.
The new arrangement, he said, was intended to improve the flow of development financing and ensure projects received funds more efficiently.
"We want to assure Tanzanians that the government is committed to ensuring all development projects are implemented at a faster pace and completed on time. With the changes we have introduced, projects will have adequate funding," he said.
