PESHAWAR, Aug 14: Political interference by the provincial government in the affairs of donor organisations has been affecting the healthcare system in the Frontier province, official sources said.

“We have conveyed our reservations to the government over its move to block the appointment of a foreigner as chief executive of the Lady Reading Hospital (LRH),” said an official of the German Technical Agency (GTZ).

The provincial government had decided to appoint a foreigner as chief executive of the hospital with the financial and technical assistance of the GTZ, but it backed out of its commitment after intervention by Jamaat-i-Islami chief Qazi Hussain Ahmad.

Sources in the health department said the government expenditure on the LRH, which has about 2,500 employees, was about $20 million per year, but the institution’s performance was declining by the day.

Sources said that political interference was also hampering the anti-polio campaign in the province. The health department, in collaboration with the Unicef, had decided to acquire services of medical and journalism graduates with MPH (masters in public health) degrees to strengthen the anti-polio campaign in the high-risk districts of Peshawar, Bannu, Tank, Shangla, Lakki Marwat, Dera Ismail Khan and Swat.

Interviews for the posts were held at the directorate of health, Fata, and the provincial health directorate in April but the provincial health department failed to make appointments due to pressure from senior functionaries.

In some cases, candidates having irrelevant qualifications were recommended for appointment, which were not acceptable to health authorities and the donor agencies.

“Donor agencies are fed up with this attitude. They want to do away with political interference in recruitment for technical jobs,” said an official of the health directorate.

According to a WHO report issued in April, at least 26,000 children have not been vaccinated against polio in three of the seven tribal agencies and eight of 24 NWFP districts.

Save the Children, another donor organisation has been appointing people under the government’s pressure on posts for which they don’t qualify, sources said.

They said the donor organisations were required to work in collaboration with the government and they weren’t in position to invite the wrath of the government.

“We appoint the government-recommended people under pressure,” said a person associated with the Canada International Development Agency (CIDA). He said that they had appointed a qualified doctor for one of their projects in Peshawar, but his services were terminated on persuasion of the provincial government.

He was replaced by a person not qualified for the job in question by a person with strong political backing.

The WHO’s polio eradication (EPI) is also faced with political pressure. “It has appointed persons as district support campaign officers, who aren’t qualified for the jobs,” said a health official.

A few months ago, the head of the WHO’s EPI for NWFP and Fata was transferred after he refused to accept political pressure in appointments, he added.Sources said the Unicef which makes most of the appointments without advertisements, is also vulnerable to political pressure.

“The Unicef appointed persons under political pressure because it wants to keep working with the government,” said a source. It also made back-door appointments which had exposed it to political interference, he added.

‘‘'There are other organisations, which are accepting the government’s recommended candidates,’’ said sources, adding that recently an international organisation was warned of packing its activities in the province when it declined a request of a leader for an appointment in the organisation.

“Why the chief minister, MNAs, MPAs and political leaders of the ruling parties intervene in such technical matters. They should stop it if they are interested to see improvement in the health delivery system,” said a GTZ official.