KARACHI, June 17: Senior office-bearers of the Pakistan Medical Association on Saturday criticised the Sindh government for planning to procure costlier equipment and said that it once again failed to set its priorities for the health sector’s spending under the annual development programme.

PMA (central) president Prof Dr Syed Tipu Sultan said that the ADP allocations in the provincial budget for 2012-13 were largely aimed at procuring medical equipment for tertiary care/teaching hospitals in contrary to the needs of the common man who did not get treatment of even minor diseases and had to undergo financial and physical troubles as the basic or primary health care facilities in his vicinity either remained non-functional or continued to be incapable from the care delivery point of view.

Flanked by other senior office-bearers, Dr Sultan was talking to representatives of the print and electronic media as part of a PMA’s coordination exercise here on Saturday.

He was of the view that the government should invest in primary and basic health care delivery set-ups rather focusing on procurement of big and costlier machines having lesser utility in terms of the number of beneficiaries.

“Basic health units are not available in many parts of the province, while on the other hand people at the helm of affairs in the health department prefer selective and hefty procurements, which san transparency but entailed huge kick backs for the top operators,” he said, adding that senior doctors involved in the procurement process had either to play silent spectators or made to boycott the relevant meetings.

Dr Mirza Ali Azhar, the PMA (central) secretary, Dr Qaiser Sajjad and Dr Pir Manzoor Ali also spoke at the meeting and called for improved relationship between the media and doctors.