Sierra Leone Telegraph: 29 December 2017:
For many years, Sierra Leone’s health service sector has been marred by the lack of vital medicines, risking the lives of millions of patients who must make do with either fake alternatives or go without.
While thousands of people die every year due to poor healthcare, questions are being asked about the true cost of medicines stolen from the government pharmaceutical stores, estimated at millions of dollars.
Yesterday, 28th December 2017, a joint team from the Central Intelligence and Security Unit (CISU), the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) and the Sierra Leone Police, apprehended a consignment of pharmaceutical products meant for the Free Health Care programme.
According to report from the Public Education and Outreach Department of the ACC received by the Sierra Leone Telegraph, the medical products were believed to have been stolen from the Central Medical Stores, New England Ville and conveyed to a privately-owned business named Goal Pharmaceutical, located at 39 Sani Abacha Street, Freetown.
Following a tip off, the operation team pursued the blue delivery van with registration number AJX 663, which was transporting the medical products.
The medical products seized in the joint operation include sixty-seven cartoons of hand gloves and hospital beds.
The owner of Goal Pharmaceutical – Sia Basma, was arrested by the team during the operation and is helping with investigations.
Am kindly appealing to all the concerned authorities of both security and the ACC to urgently take drastic action against the accused individual. Pregnant women and lactating mothers, are denied the right to medication for several years. I believe such crimes have been going on for years.