Health and Social Services Minister Dr Kalumbi Shangula has vigorously defended the controversial N.dollars 650 million tender awarded to Amnics Trading, owned by businessman Shapwa Kanyama, by the Central Procurement Board of Namibia (CPBN).
Addressing a media briefing in the capital on Thursday, Shangula said it is a matter of great concern that there are “unfortunate and dangerous views” being spread both in the mainstream media and on social media that the procurement, supply and availability of condoms as a public health intervention are not useful.
“Nothing can be more dangerous, nor further from the truth. Cancellation of this tender will paralyse the operations of the ministry, endanger public health and put human life at great risk,” Shangula explained.
He emphasised that recently, some medical operations at the country’s health institutions were cancelled due to a lack of resources required to carry out such operations, saying the ministry is charged with the responsibility of ensuring the health and life of the Namibian people and cancelling the tender will be a great disservice to the nation.
Shangula said the ministry’s role is to identify its needs, compile a list of these needs, determine quantities and specifications and send these to the CPBN.
He further explained that Namibia made strides in its efforts to curtail the spread of HIV and Aids through the provision of condoms as one of the protective measures, hence the need to procure condoms and distribute them to the nation.
The minister said he was surprised that out of 492 items tendered, only two seemed to cause dissatisfaction amongst the critics.
“Most of the items are for out-patient departments, casualty, in-patient departments, theatre, intensive casualty unit, and maternity wards, among others. Most of the comments and dissatisfaction on the tender relate to the supply of surgical gloves and latex condoms, the rest are those items which are used in our hospitals daily,” he explained.
Shangula stated that it costs less than one Namibian dollar to prevent HIV infection using a condom, while it costs approximately N.dollars 300 000 to treat an HIV-positive individual over an average lifespan.
He concluded by saying that his ministry has always budgeted and bought these items every year.
Source: The Namibian Press Agency
