Imran is fooling public: CM

Shehbaz announces abolishing fees at hospitals’ pathology labs across province

LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Tuesday that Imran Khan was trying to fool the public.

Addressing the media at District Hospital Chakwal, he criticised the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government, saying the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf are only good at is organising protests, sit ins, civil disobedience movements and lock outs.

The next elections will determine who has helped humanity and who went after politics of protest,” Shehbaz boasted.

He inaugurated the emergency block, CT scan machine and pathology lab at DHQ Hospital Chakwal on Tuesday.

After the inauguration, he went to different sections of the hospital and inquired after the health of patients. Those admitted to the hospital thanked Shehbaz for his welfare-oriented projects. The CM announced that he would immediately abolish test fees at hospitals’ outdoor pathology labs across the province. He assured that these facilities would be provide free of cost and every single resource would be made available.



The CM congratulated the people and said that he saluted pathology lab staff who had introduced such a wonderful system. A third-party audit system has been introduced for the monitoring of these labs and test expenditures will be borne by the Punjab government. A facility of conducting 43 medical tests has been provided in the labs under the IDC and it has the capacity to such facilities to more than 1,200 patients every day.

Similarly, a round-the-clock CT scan facility is also provided at DHQ Hospital Chakwal and the machine will never be “out-of-order nor there will be an excuse of unavailability of doctors or the staff”. He said the promise of transforming “hospitals culture” has been fulfilled and people are fully benefiting from the health sector reforms.

Talking to the media persons after the inauguration, the Shehbaz said that the CT scan facility has been introduced with an investment of billions of rupees at DHQ hospitals. “This facility is round-the-clock and it will never occur that any patient dies due to the dishonesty or slackness of medics. He said that thousands of tests are conducted in pathology lab in DHQ Hospital Chakwal which is a world-class facility. He said that control center of pathology lab and CT scan has been established in Lahore and Lahore-based radiologist sends report back to the concerned districts. “This is the system which has been introduced by the Punjab government has not been seen in the history of the country, he said. The CM added hospital waste management system has been devised and modern incinerators were set up in 13 districts.

Separately, he said the Punjab government would not allow the exploitation of farmers through middlemen. He issued this statement while presiding over a meeting through video link to review wheat procurement campaign.

Addressing the meeting, the CM said that no one will be allowed to exploit wheat farmers in the province and the role of middlemen would be eliminated.

Shehbaz made it clear that he would personally monitor procurement in every district. He said the protection of the interests of wheat farmers should be ensured at all cost and facilitation of farmers be ensured during the procurement process.

“Strict monitoring should be ensured in every district to eliminate the role of middlemen and strict legal action be initiated against those exploiting farmers,” he added. The chief minister reiterated that protection of interests of farmers would be ensured during the wheat procurement campaign and no one will be allowed to usurp rights.

Action will be initiated against the concerned officers or administration wherever any complaint is received about the distribution of gunny bags. Farmers are my brothers and protection of their interest has been ensured earlier and this will continue to be the case,” he added.

He said that ministers, advisors, special assistants and secretaries will personally supervise the wheat procurement campaign. He ordered commissioners and DPOs to visit procurement centers daily and submit reports.

The meeting was told that 37% distribution of gunny bags had been completed

Published in The Express Tribune, May 9^th, 2018.