Psu Says Chief Pharmacist Has Been Victimized By Health C.e.o.

Sharon Anderson

The pharmacy dispute surrounding the appointment of a Minister’s daughter remains on centre stage. Danini Contreras is the daughter of U.D.P. Minister Erwin Contreras. Contreras, who is not registered as a pharmacist in Belize, has been appointed to a post which was created for her in the Ministry of Health. The questions arising from her appointment have drawn attention to another existing condition in the Ministry. Sharon Anderson is the Chief Pharmacist, but her star has been falling steadily under C.E.O. Peter Allen and a number of her duties have been taken away from her including her removal from the tender committee, nor is she involved in training pharmacists. That’s caught the attention of the Public Service Union, which has thrown its weight behind Anderson and is demanding answers from the Ministry of Health, and specifically Chief Executive Officer Peter Allen.

Marvin Blades, President, Public Service Union

Marvin Blades

“This problem stems from when she first testified in the inquiry of the K.H.M.H. in December of 2009 and from then on, she was part of the tendering committee; that’s why she was called to actually testify. From then on, she was replaced from the tendering committee, replaced by a junior officer on the tendering committee and then her duties started to dwindle. She as the Chief Pharmacist, her job was to train all pharmacists. That responsibility was taken from her and it was given to a procurement officer, who is not a pharmacist. So a procurement officer is responsible to train pharmacists and he is not a pharmacist. She was also removed from the list on the panel that interviews new pharmacists—those who want to apply and those kinds of things—she was removed and her replacement was the very officer that replaced her in the tendering committee, a junior officer again. And then you look further down, adding worse to it, is that now the rumour that came out about this malicious email about the Chief Pharmacist being on strike has now gone to that level where now there are four persons, including the Chief Pharmacists, sign these entries including of course the woman in question, Miss Contreras, and Miss Enriquez, who replaced here in the tendering committee. So you are now removing piece by piece the work, the job, the oversight that the Chief Pharmacist had over all these pharmaceuticals in the country, who if you look at the list is the most experienced. So you are removing her from this, which would be her oversight in this job.”