RIYADH — The National Anti-Corruption Commission (Nazaha) has accused Al-Amal Rehabilitation Hospital in Riyadh of financial and administrative abuse, but the hospital has denied the charges and called for an independent investigation, local daily Al-Watan reported on Tuesday. Nazaha said it had uncovered a number of violations in the hospital including financial and administrative misdemeanors. “We have noted negligence, power misuse, dissipation of public funds, misuse of government properties and many other forms of corruption,” it said. According to the commission, some of these cases were referred to the concerned parties to consider including the Bureau of Investigation and Public Prosecution (BIP), the Control and Investigation Board (CIB) and the Ministry of Health. Nazaha said it had noted that inept services were being provided to the patients, including shortages in a number of vital medicines, faults in medical equipment, favoritism when admitting patients and a lack of places where visitors can meet with their patients. It said some doctors and consultants work in private clinics during the evenings; employees, especially heads of sections, do not register the times of their arrivals and departures; a number of employees have used fake qualifications to get promotions or be positioned in high posts that they do not deserve; and that some leading positions were given to expatriates despite the existence of qualified Saudi cadres. The commission said the hospital's employees were using government cars for their personal transportation although they are paid a monthly transport allowance, some of them have joined universities without the consent of the management and others have used their influence to secure accommodation in houses inside the complex. Nazaha said the fire detection system and smoke detectors in the hospital were not working. It also said the hospital was not clean and lacked a proper atmosphere to help patients heal. Refuting all these charges, the hospital said it is carrying out all its duties with clarity and transparency and is working hard to provide the best of services to patients. It recalled that a number of committees, including representatives from the Riyadh Governorate and the National Commission for Human Rights (NCHR), had inspected the hospital several times and reached the conclusion that it was operating properly. It said it was not responsible for the lack of some medicines as they are provided by the Health Ministry and has no hand in doctors working in private clinics during their spare time. The hospital said the level of cleanliness was good and added that it was not authorized to sign contracts with cleaning companies. The hospital denied accusations of favoritism in the admissions process and said all its medical equipment is functioning properly.
