PAC irked by rampant thefts in Arua hospital

KAMPALA – MPs sitting on the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament are very disturbed by the growing theft of hospital assets.

The MPs were on Wednesday meeting with officials from Arua Regional Referral hospital who had been invited to come and respond to audit queries at parliament presided over by Kashari North MP, Basil Bataringaya.

The MPs observed that much as the other regional hospitals have issues but Arua tops in thefts of bigger assets like an ambulance in the range of Shs300m, missing parts of computers, x-ray machines among other items.

MPs including Tororo District woman MP, Sarah Opendi and Basil Bataringaya wondered how such items can get out of the hospital premise without a trace saying that it appears they seem to be some kind of connivance that needs to be investigated.

Opendi suggested that in a bid to curb the culprits stealing hospital assets, there is a need to install CCTV cameras in all areas of the hospital otherwise the lost items may never be recovered.

The Vuura county MP, Yovan Adriko said he was very disappointed and short of words after hearing the nasty issues in Arua. “Why are you people destroying Arua, if you don’t want to save the people go elsewhere. It’s sad that Arua is known for all the bad things and I feel it’s too much,” said Adriko.

The MPs also tasked the director to explain why there was underpayment of salaries totaling to Shs 14,673,212 as per the variations in which Dr Nyeko the director of the hospital responded saying that the anomaly came because most of these staff were on interdiction as a disciplinary matter and some were before rewards and sanctions committee over indiscipline.

When legislators tasked him to explain the wrong computations and how it came about, the outgoing director of Arua hospital, Dr Filbert Nyeko informed the committee that gratuity/pension payments were automatically computed through IPPS system which sometimes may have some errors. However, consultants with systems officers in Public service ministry are going to have errors of under/overpayments rectified.