While top bosses of the health ministry and directorate general of health services (DGHS) are blaming each other over the corona test scam, government rules suggest the minister, secretary and the DG health should take their respective part of responsibility for allowing the malfeasance to happen.
The unearthing of the fake corona testing made headlines across the globe - from the New York Times to the Bangkok Post, triggering public outcry for bringing all the responsible persons to the book.
Law enforcement agencies have recently arrested the kingpins of the scams Regent Hospital owner Shahed and JKG Healthcare chairman Dr Sabrina, who allegedly were making money by putting the people's lives in danger.
Questions have also been raised how Shahed, a convict on-the-run, turned into a known face among the power circle and what should be their responsibilities.
Soon after the uncovering of the scam, the health ministry trio--the minister, the secretary and the DG health -reached out to the media to play down their responsibilities.
According to the Rule 4 of the Rules of Business, "All business allocated to a ministry /division under schedule 1 of these Rules, shall be disposed of by or under the general or special directions of the minister-in-charge."
However, defining the responsibility of a secretary, the Rule 4(v) said, the secretary shall be the administrative head of the ministry/division.
Secretaries shall be responsible for its administration and discipline and for proper conduct of business assigned to it.
They shall also be responsible for careful observance of these rules in his ministry /division, attached departments and subordinate offices. The secretary shall keep the minister -in -charge informed of the workings of the ministry/division.
The rule 4(vi) said, "The secretary shall be the Principal Accounting Officer of the ministry/division. Attached departments and subordinate Officers shall ensure that funds allocated to the ministry/division are spent in accordance with rules /laws for the time being in force.
Though the rules do not specifically mention that the minister is the chief executive of the ministry, experts said it is implied.
After the scam surfaced, health minister Zahed Maleque said that the DG had awarded the contract without the approval from the ministry.
The then health secretary also blamed the DG, saying that he did not give the permission and the DG said that the directorate had given the permission to Regent with the permission from the ministry.
While they are shifting blame, three key figures of the ministry were present during the agreement-signing with the Regent Hospital, where Shahed was found ever-smiling throughout the ceremony.
In a twist, the then health secretary was promoted to the post of a senior secretary and was transferred to another ministry.
"I do not understand how it was done. When things became messy in the health ministry over the corona management, the secretary was removed, but with a reward," former cabinet secretary Ali Imam Mazumder told the FE on Friday.
Mr Mazumder said the basic responsibility lies with the DG Heath as it was their job to check the eligibility or the capacity of a hospital.
The DG said that he got verbal permission from the secretary, but in such cases, the issue of verbal permission can easily be denied.
On Thursday, the then secretary said that he did not give any permission to the DG Health to allow the Regent for corona testing.
"Wait, I will reveal the incident very soon" he told reporters in response to the claim of the DG that they got permission from the secretary.
"The physical presence of the secretary and the minister in the signing ceremony with the Regent proved that they were aware of the incident and so they cannot discount the matter," said Mr Mazumder.
Commenting on the issue of responsibility, he also said that those who helped Mr Shahed push to the power corridor should also be identified.
The Regent had not renewed its licence, but the government had allowed it to operate as a place for treating COVID-19 patients.
Shahed's hospitals claimed to have carried out 10,500 coronavirus tests.
Only 4,200 of them were genuine and the remaining 6,300 test reports, were allegedly given without conducting tests. `
He also allegedly charged people for tests and virus treatment, despite agreeing with the government to provide these services for free at his hospitals.
Local media said that fake testing was becoming a menace, with Shahed being one of more than a dozen arrested over such scams.
Dr Sabrina, a heart surgeon working for a government hospital, and her husband were arrested on charges of issuing fake certificates at JKG Healthcare they founded.
Sabrina is a heart surgeon at the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases. Though she claimed she is Covid-19 affairs consultant of JKG, not chairman, police enquiry confirmed she is the chairperson of the establishment.JKG has been issuing Covid-19 certificates without conducting tests that prompted the police to detain Dr Sabrina's husband and CEO of the facility.
Police came to know that JKG Healthcare, which calls itself a non-profit organisation, issued 27,000 Covid-19 reports.
Out of those, the facility tested 11,540 samples through the IEDCR, and prepared reports of rest samples in its laptop, for which law enforcement agencies found evidence during investigation.
mirmostafiz@yahoo.com