Govt urged to stabilise prices of medicines, discourage profiteering

PESHAWAR:  Speakers at a gathering have urged the government to bring stability in the prices of medicines and take solid steps for discouraging profiteering by the manufactures.

The call was made during the monthly session of the “Shoora-e-Hamdard.” The Hamdard Foundation Pakistan had arranged the programme.  The topic for the session was “Drug manufacturing industry and public health demands.”

Hakeem Abdul Waheed, senior vice-president of the Pakistan Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association, was the guest speaker. 

Shoora-e-Hamdard Chairman Dr Salahuddin presided over the function.

People associated with the drug manufacturing industry were in attendance as well apart from members of the Shoora-e-Hamdard. 

Hakeem Abdul Waheed believed the health sector had never remained a priority with the successive governments and that led to creation of hardships for the masses.

Talking about the quality of drugs, he said there had been instances where even patients admitted at the state-run hospitals lost lives after being administered medicines.

Hakeem Abdul Waheed was critical of the drug registration process and said it was flawed. “It has been made cumbersome on purpose. The hidden interests of various departments are the reasons for all this,” he said while qualifying his statement.

The participants, mostly members of the Shoora-e-Hamdard, put up questions to the guest speaker. The queries related to the topic. They also made observations and suggestions. 

Those present at the function called for tangible steps by the government and the relevant departments to provide relief to the masses. The participants emphasised on the stability in the prices of medicines and discouraging profiteering by the manufactures.

The gathering offered special prayer for the eternal peace of Hakim Muhammed Said, the founder of the Hamdard Foundation, who was martyred in Karachi on October 17, 1998 when unidentified gunmen opened fire on his vehicle.