Health minister faces protests over removal of Noakhali hospital chief
The minister found what he described as widespread disorder in patient care and hospital administration.
Health and Family Welfare Minister Sardar Sakhawat Husain faced protests during a sudden inspection of Noakhali General Hospital today (16 June), after ordering the removal of the hospital's superintendent over allegations of irregularities and mismanagement.
The minister visited the 250-bed hospital in Noakhali and inspected several departments, where he found what he described as widespread disorder in patient care and hospital administration.
Following the inspection, he ordered the immediate withdrawal of Superintendent Dr Md Farid Uddin Chowdhury. Shortly after the announcement, a group of people gathered outside the hospital and staged protests against the decision.
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Amid the demonstrations, the minister left the hospital premises and later addressed journalists at the Noakhali Circuit House.
Speaking to reporters, Sakhawat alleged that individuals appointed during the previous administration, along with their associates, had effectively taken control of the hospital's operations.
"The superintendent of Noakhali General Hospital has been withdrawn. I have also instructed authorities to form a three-member committee," he said.
Describing the conditions he witnessed during the visit as "very disturbing", the minister said a public hospital could not be allowed to function under such levels of mismanagement.
"What I saw at the hospital today was appalling. A hospital cannot operate in this manner. We will gradually address these problems and bring the situation under control," he added.
He further said that Noakhali Civil Surgeon Dr Anwar Hossain had been verbally assigned additional responsibility as acting superintendent until further notice.
The minister also attributed the current situation to years of administrative failures, saying corruption and irregularities had become deeply entrenched in the health sector.
"Wherever we intervene, we find mismanagement and poor conditions. These problems cannot be resolved overnight. It is not possible to change everything within three and a half months," he said.
Criticising both the former Awami League government and the interim administration, he added that prolonged mismanagement had left the country's health sector in a fragile state.
