JEDDAH, 2 May 2007 — The Health Ministry announced yesterday that it had closed down 99 private hospitals, polyclinics, medical laboratories and pharmacies in Riyadh during the past three months for violating regulations.
Abdul Aziz ibn Abdul Mohsen Al-Dakheel, director general of health affairs in the Riyadh region, said his department detected the violations by carrying out more than 3,500 surprise inspections during the past three months.
In a statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency, Dakheel said his department would not show any leniency toward health institutions that violate the ministry’s rules and instructions. “We give top priority to the health of citizens and residents,” he said, adding that inspectors would continue to check violators.
The Council of Ministers approved a National Strategy to Protect Honesty and Combat Corruption last February. It also decided to facilitate administrative procedures and question dishonest officials, irrespective of their positions, as part of a major move to root out all forms of corruption from the country.
While opening the Shoura Council’s annual session last year, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah reiterated the government’s resolve to fight corruption and red tape and improve the efficiency of the system.
King Abdullah last year rewarded dietitian Abeer Ghazi Al-Masoudi for her revelations about the dishonest practices of her former employer, a catering contractor for state hospitals. She received a cash award as well as a job with a monthly salary of SR5,000 at the Health Ministry. The contractor had prepared false records exaggerating the number of meals delivered to area hospitals.
In a recent statement, Health Minister Hamad Al-Manie said his ministry had fired three Saudi employees on grounds of administrative corruption. He vowed to punish other corrupt officials, stamp out all kinds of corruption in the ministry and dismiss anyone who violates the law.
Al-Manie was the first minister to announce firing of corrupt officials after the Cabinet approved the anti-graft strategy two months ago. The ministry dismissed three foreign workers on Feb. 26 for stealing vaccines from public health centers and selling them to private clinics. The Health Ministry is now in the process of linking all public hospitals, health centers, pharmacies and other medical facilities with an advanced information network as part of its efforts to facilitate services and prevent corruption.
