‘29 doctors among 227 ghost employees at KIHD’

Karachi
The Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) has stopped disbursement of salaries to at least 227 employees of Karachi Institute of Heart Diseases (KIHD), including 29 doctors, who have not reported to work for the past several years but were continuously drawing their monthly remuneration.
KMC Administrator Sajjad Husasin Abbassi had launched an investigation into the existence of ghost employees, including doctors and paramedics, at the KIHD after complaints were received of irregularities in its affairs. The subsequent investigation revealed that at least 227 employees hadn’t showed up to work at the KIHD for the past several years.
Ironically, though, all these ghost employees were being reported to be present on duty by the KIHD administration.
The Karachi Institute of Heart Diseases is the city’s second largest health institution specialising in treatment of patients with cardiac ailments and caters to a large number of people from district Central, East and West.
Acting on the directives of KMC Administrator, senior director health Dr Salma Kauser directed the KIHD authorities to immediately stop payment of salaries to all the ghost employees. She also asked the administration to issue show-cause notices to the employees with instructions to appear before her in person in the next three days and explain their absence from work.
On the other hand, officials in KMC’s health department claimed that more lists were being prepared of paramedics and doctors, and also employees of the administrative departments, who were recruited at KMC-run hospitals of the city but continue to draw their salaries without reporting to work.
They said officials of law-enforcement agencies, Sindh Anti-Corruption Establishment and Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) were assisting the KMC authorities in tracing out ghost employees at KMC-run hospitals, dispensaries and other health institutions hired in the past decade but have never reported to work.
The officials who requested anonymity claimed all the so-called ghost employees had been hired on the political influence of a Karachi-based political party. “Due to their political influence, nobody in the KMC dared ask them to report to duty and justify salaries they kept drawing on a monthly basis,” they said.
Meanwhile, Dr Salma Kausar has asked ghost employees of the KIHD to appear before her within the next three days along with their relevant documents or transfer letters in case of transfers, to prove they have earned the salaries received from the KMC.