Govt hits out at doctors over US funding row

National Editor

GOVERNMENT has hit out at the Zimbabwe College of Public Health Physicians for “out of order” conduct and violating the rules of propriety by publicly meddling in a high-level diplomatic dispute between Harare and Washington.

The rebuke follows a statement by the ZCPHP expressing concern over the collapse of negotiations for a bilateral health funding agreement that would have seen the United States gain extensive access to sensitive health data from Zimbabwe, including pathogen samples and epidemiological information concerning the country’s citizens.

The medical body, which used to get foreign aid funding, had warned that the fallout could jeopardise the nation’s fight against HIV/Aids, malaria and tuberculosis.

In response, Deputy Chief Secretary (Presidential Communications) Mr George Charamba said the physicians had strayed far beyond their professional remit into matters of national security and sovereignty.

“What they have done is to injudiciously pronounce themselves in respect of a matter which is beyond their knowledge base,” Mr Charamba said. “The issue at hand involves many other factors beyond just the physician’s skills that they wield.”

He also expressed dismay that a Zimbabwean professional body would choose to use X (formerly Twitter) — an American social media platform — to lobby the Government on a sensitive matter involving the US government.

“Whose attention do they want to catch? Do they want us to then conclude that they were in fact beneficiaries of American funding through USAID?” he added.

Mr Charamba also stressed that the decision to handle the US response through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, rather than the Ministry of Health, was a clear signal of the matter’s gravity.

“This was because the matter relates to the very sovereignty of this nation. If we wanted to name a technical matter, we would have done so through their parent ministry. That should have given them a cue in terms of the scope of the matter,” he said.

He also advised the medical experts to stick to their professional channels if they had any constructive input to offer the State.

“If they have anything constructive to give, they must do it through their parent ministry. Unfortunately, they have gone against the rules of propriety.”

The Government maintains that while health delivery remains a priority, it will not trade off the nation’s independence or allow external actors to use aid as a tool for interference.