KP Sehat Card Programme to Face Financial Audit
A comprehensive financial audit of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Sehat Card programme has been called for to ensure transparency, accountability and proper use of public funds.
The demand was made by Lt Gen (retd) Nigar Johar, a member of the KP Advisory Council on Health, during a meeting held to review the programme’s administrative and financial affairs.
Johar directed the relevant authorities to thoroughly examine the programme’s finances and determine whether public funds were being used in accordance with established rules and regulations.
Services to continue uninterrupted
Johar acknowledged that the Sehat Card programme has significantly benefited the public by improving access to healthcare services, and stressed the importance of maintaining its effectiveness.
She also instructed officials to ensure uninterrupted healthcare services for beneficiaries while strengthening financial oversight and accountability at all levels.
The Sehat Card, which funds free treatment for enrolled families at empanelled hospitals, is one of KP’s flagship welfare schemes. Its medical footprint is visible in stories like the first kidney transplant carried out at Khyber Teaching Hospital under the card.
A genuine demand, not a rumour
Johar’s name has been attached to Sehat Card claims before — falsely. On October 13 we fact-checked and debunked a fabricated social media post that attributed a Sehat Card probe announcement to her, after Samar Haroon Bilour rejected the fake claim. Friday’s audit demand is different: it comes from an official council meeting reviewing the programme’s books, not a viral graphic.
The distinction matters. The Sehat Card moves large volumes of public money through private and public hospitals, which is precisely why its finances attract both genuine scrutiny and manufactured controversy.
New scrutiny under a new setup
The audit call also reflects the province’s changed governance. Johar sits on the KP Advisory Council on Health, part of the 11-member technocratic KP Advisory Council formed to assist Governor Faisal Karim Kundi after the federal government imposed emergency and governor’s rule in the province on October 11.
With the elected provincial government set aside, the council is now the forum where programmes like the Sehat Card are reviewed — and where questions about their finances get asked. Whether the ordered audit produces public findings will be the test of how seriously the new setup takes its own transparency rhetoric.
Frequently asked questions
Who called for the Sehat Card audit?
Lt Gen (retd) Nigar Johar, member of the KP Advisory Council on Health, during a meeting reviewing the programme’s administrative and financial affairs.
Will Sehat Card services stop during the audit?
No. Johar instructed officials to ensure uninterrupted healthcare services for beneficiaries while the financial review proceeds.
Is this connected to the earlier fake probe claim?
No. A fabricated post attributed to Johar on October 13 was debunked. This audit demand comes from an official council meeting.
