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Leonard Ncube, Victoria Falls Reporter
BINGA District has vaccinated about 10 000 people since the start of the vaccination exercise out of an eligible population of close to 100 000.

Health and Child Care Deputy Minister Dr John Mangwiro who visited Binga last Friday said he was disappointed with health personnel in the district after he found “things not in order” at Binga District Hospital where there is poor administration and suspected corruption involving illegal sale of drugs by health staff.

Binga has 17 vaccination centres spread around 24 wards and is one of Matabeleland North’s Covid-19 hotspots.

Government is targeting to vaccinate at least 60 percent of the population to achieve herd immunity and has procured 12 million doses of vaccines since the launch of the exercise in February.

More than one million people have been vaccinated countrywide.

Dr Mangwiro was accompanied by the Provincial Medical Director for Matabeleland North Dr Admire Kuretu.

He was forced to extend his stay after it emerged that Binga District Hospital was having challenges.

Health personnel at the hospital reportedly spent Thursday night cleaning the facility after being told that the Deputy Minister was on his way.

Dr Mangwiro said he found the institution in a mess which made him sleep over in Binga to monitor activities.

He was on a countrywide tour to mobilise communities to get vaccinated.

Dr Mangwiro said he will be going back to Binga as he was not happy with the state of affairs.

“I was in Binga and what I found there is not pleasing. Binga really needs a lot of support. They have only vaccinated 10 000 people out of 95 000 and that is not acceptable. A lot of things are going on at the hospital with staff there being conservative and pharmacists said to be selling medicines, “ said Dr Mangwiro.

He said there seemed to be problems with distribution of vaccines and measures have to be worked out to improve the situation.

“I have tasked the PMD to monitor and check progress this week and I will be going back there myself to make a follow up,” said Dr Mangwiro.

He said he mobilised various stakeholders in the district including police and the local authority to provide transport for vaccination teams and consumables.

Meanwhile, Dr Kuretu who started work in the province on Wednesday last week, has been visiting districts.

A University of Zimbabwe trained medical doctor, Dr Kuretu was previously the provincial maternal and child health officer in Mashonaland West.

He takes over from Dr Munekai Padingani who had been acting PMD since April last year following the resignation of Dr Pugie Chimberengwa.

Dr Chimberengwa had been working in the province since November 2018 after replacing Dr Nyasha Masuka who also resigned.-@ncubeleon