Ever since July 22nd when the notice was published that Pharmacy Express Limited applied for a 7 million dollar loan from Social Security Board - the company has been taking a pounding, in the press, on social media, and even publicly from the Ministry of Health.
Perhaps that culminated yesterday with the Ministry of Health and Wellness's raid of Pharmacy Express's pharmacies at the Fort Street Tourism Village.
And, this evening, it seemed that the company has had enough: it has officially - as of yesterday - withdrawn its loan application at the Social Security Board.
A release from Social Security says it had informed Pharmacy Express that the Ministry of Health and Works had expressed concern with the fact that, quote, "presently (the company) is not in possession of a pharmaceutical license to operate and therefore the entity was operating without a license and should not be dispensing or supplying pharmaceuticals to the public." End quote.
Pharmacy Express had until yesterday to respond - and it did not - but instead sent the SSB CEO a letter saying "they were withdrawing their loan application."
And while that withdrawal will relieve some degree public anxiety, we note that the Social Security Investment Committee had already unanimously approved a loan for a "pharmaceutical company that had no license," which seems to fall well short of the prudential standard required for managing public funds.
But, the revelation of the Ministry's exact reservations perhaps shines some light on the motive behind yesterday's raid and seizure of controlled drugs at Pharmacy Express's retail outlets in the FSTV - which attorneys for the company maintain was illegal. We note that only two of the company's four pharmacies were inspected - since some higher up reportedly called the Ministry's Inspectors to call off the search.
