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Nyore Madzianike Manicaland Bureau
CHIPINGE District Hospital was a few months ago rocked by allegations of theft of drugs by staff members which forced the district’s administration to institute investigations.

The allegations, which came before the devastating tropical cyclone hit the country and were exposed via social media, have also seen the Ministry of Health and Child Care dispatching an investigating team from Harare to look into the matter.

Chipinge District Hospital is one of the centres where Cyclone Idai victims have been receiving treatment and the referral institution serves other communities from as far as Mozambique.

Sources at the referral hospital, said vital medical drugs have been misappropriated with some of them finding their way to private institutions.

“The matter came to light through social media,” said the source.

“This was before the cyclone disaster and I am pretty sure the district administration was seized with the matter. I am also sure that an investigation into the matter was launched although we are not aware of the findings,” said the source.

Chipinge district administrator Mr William Mashava acknowledged that allegations of misappropriation of medical drugs were raised at the hospital.

He, however, said the allegations were being peddled by people involved in the institution’s internal politics after some staff members were disgruntled by manpower changes that were made at the hospital.

“Remember they came from social media and I am sure there was nothing serious as the allegations were more of clashes as a result of politics at the hospital,” he said.

“There was a medical doctor Dr Makumbe who changed people within the departments after he noted that some things were not being done well. The changes did not go down well with others, who within three or four days started raising such allegations,” he said.

Mr Mashava said there was a provincial investigation team that looked into the matter and it was yet to furnish them with a report.

Manicaland provincial medical director Dr Patron Mafaune said an audit was instituted at the referral hospital and she was yet to receive a report.

“There was an audit which was done following such reports. I think there was nothing serious that came from the investigations as we are still to receive a report.

“Whenever an audit is done and something comes out, there is need to make a police report with seven days and nothing of that nature happened.

“It then suggest that nothing serious came out as the allegations made via a WhatsApp message,” she said.