Health Minister, Jonas Chanda has directed Zambia Medicines and Medical Supplies Agency (ZAMMSA) to destroy all expired drugs as there is a danger that the expired medical supplies and drugs themselves on the market if they land in the hands of the unscrupulous people.
In a statement released by the Ministry of Health the Health Minister is concerned that the ZAMMSA is still piling expired medicines in its warehouse that is supposed to be disposed off.
Dr. Chanda says there is a danger that these products can find themselves on the market if they were found themselves in the hands of unscrupulous people, posing a danger to unsuspecting members of the public.
The Minister said this when he paid an impromptu visit to the ZAMMSA Headquarters Warehouse.
The visibly disappointed Minister added that it was unacceptable to allow the much-needed drugs to expire in the ZAMMSA warehouses when Government was investing huge amounts of money to procure them.
And Dr. Chanda has given a 24 hour ultimate to management at ZAMMSA to provide his office a comprehensive list of all expired drugs in the warehouse and how much they cost.
Dr. Chanda said it is regrettable to have drugs and medical supplies expire when the health facilities are experiencing shortages.
He is optimistic that the change in name and functions from Medical Stores Limited to ZAMMSA, will bring to end wastage of resources through expired drugs as well as end procurement loopholes.
Dr. Chanda says his role as Minister was to protect the public and not to harm them.
This PF regime is so wasteful ,blind and irresponsible .We need a new GRZ that is prudent,accountable and visionary so that scarce forex is not wasted on expired drugs.
Clean up and screen staff at ZAMMSA. You may have rogue elements working against Government.
What a waste.
Some chaps at workplaces are so selfish and think as if their role is to hold stock as if its their personal store.
Ain’t that embarrassing?
Is that the job of a Cabinet Minister to order expired drugs destroyed? What about the expired drugs, faulty condoms,face masks etc already sold to the Public? How is the Public to be compensated for this? PF is just a corrupt enterprise.
Even in clinics they repeatedly give patients expired medicine. Be careful.
Are we cursed as people of this nation or we have cursed leadership.
Maybe is medicine for diseases like polio or ebola.
How can Zambia have expired medicine to treat malaria or akaswende?
This thorn I agree with you. There are some evil elements who penetrated our government from opposition and we are clearing them out. They are paid by that evil boy hh
Jonas Chanda, only PF Minister focused and hardworking. The former minister of health was mostly concerned with being in the lime light and mentioning the name of Edgar Chagwa Lungu unnecessarily at all times as a smoke screen as many others in the present government are doing
Well said they must be destroyed so that they don’t reach the public
They bought cheap expired medicine next to nothing and pocketed the change on grossly inflated contract from their Indian friends this clown comes along starts looking like a star….if he was genuine he would be calling for arrests.
Job well done the expired medicine must be destroyed
Haha, next paranoid Kaizar Zulu will say the evil boi paid him to rig the elections. Time is ticking – tick tock, tick tock, tick tock. To make matters worse all mouseholes are almost fall
Mavhuto you must have suffered a lot in your childhood to be given that name. Explains why you had to seek asylum abroad. Anyway uzivuta chabe because we don’t need to rig elections which we have been winning since 2011
True the health system is there to ensure people are healthy not the other way round
Yes the drugs should be destroyed no use in keeping destroyed drugs
@Kaizar Zulu and @Mavhuto is like monkeys laughing at each other’s back side. However, as we have said before, PF regime is incapable of doing anything sensible. Its too late now to destroy expired drugs and make it news to Zambians. What will follow Zambians after consuming and using substandard medicines and defective medical provisions is death after death of innocent Zambians. That is a huge indictment on the PF regime – PF should apologise to Zambia.
It is good to be proactive BUT BETTER to be both proactive and holistic!! The Minister should have even checked WHEN THE DRUGS WERE ORDERED,WHEN THEY ARRIVED and HOW FAR WERE THEY EXPIRY THEY WERE BEING ORDERED AND SHIPPED INTO THE COUNTRY!! As @10 Tarino has said, THERE IS A POSSIBILITY SOMEONE ORDERED DRUGS THAT WERE NEAR EXPIRY DATES TO KNOCK DOWN PRICES BUT INFLATED THE BILL TO POCKET MONEY FOR THEMSELVES! These are issues that require VERY,VERY DETAILED INVESTIGATIONS IN ORDER TO CLEAN THE SYSTEM. Not these knee jerk reactions that are not adequately holistic!!
Mwandini Jonas you are working mwe. If ever there is a rescue you are a part of it koma! I am impressed. Very.
You are destroy evidence….put in place a mechanism …audit… paper trial…court order to destroy.. and an order on how the exhibits will be treated in the event those rascals appear before court