The Ministry of Health says Sheikh Ahmed Dalmook Al Maktoum has agreed to refund $2,470,000 disbursed by government to supply 300,000 doses of Sputnik Covid-19 vaccines.
A letter sighted by Awake News and signed by Chief Director, Kwabena Boadu Oku-Afari, to the Finance Ministry dated August 9 said, “The Private Officer of His Highness, per the correspondence, has honourably agreed to refund an amount of $2,470,000 being the balance left on the 50% advance payment of $2,850,000,”
The letter was in relation to an earlier one dated August 5, 2021, from Sheikh Al Maktoum to the Ministry of Health.
The letter expounded that, the refund is because Sheikh Al Maktoum delivered only 20,000 Sputnik vaccines out of the expected 300,000 doses.
This comes after the Health Minister, Kwaku Agyeman-Manu wrote to Sheikh Al Maktoum to refund the money for the non-supplied doses after the Committee assigned by Parliament to investigate the deal discovered that the amount of $2,850,000 (representing 50% of the contract sum of $5,700,000.00) had been paid to Messrs Al Maktoum despite the Minister claiming no payment had been made.
The Health Minister was consequently charged to write to Sheikh Al Maktoum and demand a refund.
“By this letter, I also wish to formally request for the refund of the remaining amount for the non-supplied doses, which should be the total amount paid to your office, minus the amount due for the 20,000 doses you already supplied, in line with your earlier e-mail dated July 25, 2021, in which it was affirmed that on April 13, 2021, funds were transferred into your accounts as 50% advance for the initial batch of 300,000 doses,” part of Mr Agyeman-Manu’s letter read.
In response, Sheikh Al Maktoum confirmed the amount to be refunded, asserting that “please share with us the bank details where the refund needs to be processed.”
With regards to this, the Ministry of Health has requested that the Finance Ministry provide it with the necessary bank details to transfer the said amount to be refunded.
“We trust that this request will be given the necessary urgent attention,” the statement said.
The committee in its report noted that the minister revealed that the decision to buy the vaccines at US$19 per dose instead of the factory price of 10 dollars per dose was after the distributor pulled out following negotiations from a starting price of $28 per price.
But the populace continues to be alarmed by the cost of the vaccines, hence urging the government to relieve the Health Minister of its duties for causing financial loss to the state.