PESHAWAR: Questions have been raised over the financial procedures governing travel and accommodation expenses of the Board of Governors (BoG) of Khyber Teaching Hospital (KTH) after official records showed that Rs433,977 was spent on hotel accommodation and travelling expenses for the chairman and two board members in connection with meetings held last year.
Documents available with The News showed that Rs237,977 was incurred on hotel accommodation for four days, while another Rs196,000 was spent on travel between Islamabad/Rawalpindi and Peshawar over three days.
The expenditure was met from Rs600,000 obtained in advance from the Finance Department. According to officials, the unused balance was returned after the expenditure was incurred.However, the key question is whether the hotel and travelling bills were incurred within the rates, entitlements, approval mechanisms and financial procedures prescribed under the Medical Teaching Institutions (MTI) framework. The chairman, who has since resigned, and two other BoG members were the beneficiaries of the expenditure, officials said.
When contacted, KTH Public Relations Officer Sajjad Khan said the expenditure was related to the previous year and maintained that the BoG chairman had not travelled alone. He said the chairman travelled with other board members for an event and stayed there in connection with the engagement.
Officials and sources familiar with the functioning of MTIs said similar expenditure was not limited to KTH. They pointed to instances involving accommodation, transportation, meals and other facilities provided to BoG members of different medical teaching institutions while attending meetings and other engagements.
Sources said official hospital vehicles had also been used at different MTIs to transport BoG members for meetings and other official engagements, with questions occasionally arising over the nature and purpose of such journeys.
The issue, therefore, extends beyond a single KTH bill and raises questions about whether a consistent financial policy is being followed across the MTI system for travel, accommodation and related expenses of board members.
Records of other KTH BoG meetings also indicate expenditure on accommodation, meals and transportation. During meeting No. 115, an amount of Rs204,912 was recorded against accommodation, dinner and transportation. Documents relating to meeting No. 112, held in April 2025, showed expenditure of Rs148,432 on hotel accommodation, dinners, refreshments, transportation and other related heads.
Officials said obtaining advance funds and returning the unused balance did not, by itself, settle whether the underlying expenditure was permissible. Each payment, they said, would have to be examined against the relevant rules, approved rates, authorisation and supporting documentation.
The issue assumes significance because of the considerable administrative and financial autonomy given to the boards under the Medical Teaching Institutions Reforms Act (MTIRA), 2015.The law was introduced to provide greater administrative and financial autonomy to teaching hospitals and affiliated medical and dental colleges. The framework has subsequently been implemented in 11 public-sector hospitals in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, each governed by its own BoG.
Under the MTI system, the boards exercise broad powers over institutional management, financial administration, strategic planning and clinical governance, including major appointments and procurement decisions, subject to applicable laws and regulations.
Public-sector MTIs receive government funding through a single-line grant, while their boards have considerable discretion over the internal allocation of funds between affiliated medical colleges and hospitals.
