PESHAWAR, Aug 20: The NWFP Health Department has warned project directors against dealing directly with foreign donor organisations directly and has asked them to pursue matters with donor agencies through proper channels, official sources said.
The directives issued on Thursday asked the managers of the TB Control Programme, HIV/Aids Control Programme, Expanded Programme on Immunisation, Reproductive Health and Nutrition, Lady Health Workers Programme, Rollback Malaria Programme and Women Health Project to follow prescribed rules for dealing with donor organisations and non-governmental organisations (NGOs), an official said.
Sources said that the manager of the vertical programmes executed by the directorate of health contacted donor organisations and availed foreign tours without seeking permission from higher authorities. They informed that some officials had visited foreign countries sponsored by international donor agencies on behalf of the directorate of health.
The authorities concerned, the sources said, had taken exception to this practice because such visits by officials were of no utility to the department.
They said: “During the last four years more than two dozens officials had visited foreign countries, including the US, Canada, the UK, Germany, Australia, etc., without permission from the authorities concerned.”
They said that the authorities wanted to streamline the process of contacts with donor agencies for the benefit of the health department.
They said that doctors and officials of the vertical programme often sought leave from the department concerned and did not inform the authorities concerned about their visits abroad.
The directives issued by the director-general health services said that it had come to the notice of the authorities concerned that most of the project managers at the health department were in the habit of keeping direct contacts with donor agencies and NGOs which was in clear violation of rules and regulations.
The directive said that this practice was in progress despite repeated instructions from time to time and said that in future strict disciplinary action would be initiated against those violating the rules.
MAN HELD: A man was arrested at the Peshawar airport while attempting to board a PIA flight to Riyadh on the passport of his deceased cousin, a senor official told Dawn.
Ajeeb, son of Sadiq Rehman, of the Dir district, presented passport KF-442467, issued by the Pakistan Embassy in Saudi Arabia on Dec 12, 2005, to immigration authorities of the Federal Investigation Agency at the airport on Saturday evening, said assistant director (immigration) Inamullah Khan Gandapur.
Immigration officials interrogated the passenger on suspicion of photo-change on the passport and he confessed that it was his deceased cousin Saleh Rehman’s passport, Mr Gandapur said.
Ajeeb said he had earlier worked in Saudi Arabia for seven years. He had been arrested by the Saudi police when his employer refused to return his passport because he had been working with another person in Riyadh.