The Directorate of Health Services dutifully utilised Rs 248 crore during the Covid-19 pandemic but Dr Aman War, the department’s former boss and now candidate for North Shillong, hinted that there could have been malfeasance regarding the hundreds of crores spent by other arms of the government.
Dr War filed his nomination papers as a United Democratic Party (UDP) candidate today.
The state government reportedly spent more than Rs 800 crore battling against Covid-19.
“I cannot comment on the more than Rs 800 crore spent for Covid-19 in the state because all I know is that Rs 248 crore was spent by my directorate,” War told reporters after filing his nomination today. “Our expenditure at that point of time was around Rs 248 crore. Now that the expenditure is more than Rs 800 crore, you have to ask the people involved in this.”
When asked about the (Right to Information) RTI findings received by activist Disparsing Rani, who alleged that more than Rs 40 crore was misappropriated, Dr War said that central funds do not come to the DHS but to the state government.
He also said that since everything has been placed before the floor of the Assembly in the presence of all the members, those who felt that there are irregularities should ask questions in the house.
Meanwhile, Dr War said that now that he has retired from government service, whatever little experience he has gained from it he wants to put it to use in the political sphere to make the state better.
“I have met the teachers, educationists, doctors and people at the grassroots and my constituency is an unpolished diamond. We have an economy right from Ïewduh upto Khyndailad and we need to polish this and make it shine again like a diamond,” he added.
