LAHORE, Jan 24: The health ministry is allegedly interfering with the affairs of the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC), an independent autonomous body, to manipulate the election of PMDC president.
The PMDC election for president was scheduled during the council session on Jan 26-27. The seat fell vacant after the death of Prof Dr Hayat Zafar, who had himself asked the PMDC council in early December to hold election during the next council session in view of expiry of his tenure as its president on Jan 28.
The PMDC had then issued a notice that the PMDC council session would be held on Jan 26-27. The agenda of the session was election for new PMDC president.
As some council members are campaigning for the election, sources claim the health ministry is sponsoring Director-General Health Dr Abdul Majeed Rajput as the candidate for the top office.
In order to support Dr Rajput, sources in Islamabad alleged that the health ministry was trying to induct the representatives of the provisionally recognized medical and dental colleges/institutions as council members to strengthen its vote bank.
They claim that the ministry had assured them their representation on the PMDC Council, if they would support the DGH in the PMDC president election. It is learnt that the health ministry had also asked some principals of public sector medical colleges to vote for the DGH in the election.
Meanwhile, the health ministry has advised the PMDC to postpone the election as private medical and dental colleges/institutions have made a representation to the ministry that they be granted membership on the PMDC Council. The ministry has also taken a plea that some posts of existing members, including that of the late president, are lying vacant.
The sources also termed the repatriation of PMDC secretary Dr Sohail Karim Hashmi a move to manipulate the election. They said the ministry was considering Dr Hashmi a hurdle in the 'smooth' election of DGH's Dr Rajput as PMDC president.
The sources, however, claimed that the ministry could not repatriate Dr Hashmi as he was permanently absorbed in the PMDC service and was no longer a government employee.
Explaining the health ministry's moves, the sources said the ministry had asked the PMDC acting president on Dec 31 to convene a meeting of all the heads of recognized/provisionally recognized private medical/dental institutions to discuss the issues and problems of their institutions with an objective to promoting quality medical and dental education in the country.
The PMDC then invited the principals of private institutions. Later, on the directions of the ministry, it also invited the owners of the private institutions to attend the meeting on Jan 15.
The sources alleged that a day before the meeting, the DGH held out an assurance to the Pakistan Association of Private Medical and Dental Institutions representatives that they would be given membership on the council, if they would vote for him as PMDC president.
Reportedly, a majority of association members assured the DGH that they would vote for him. During the Jan 15 meeting, an association representative demanded that all institutions should be given representation on the council.
He said the problems being faced by private chartered universities/medical institutions/dental institutions could be rectified by making their representatives equal members on the PMDC Council and partners in the deliberative process.
Consequently, the health ministry issued a letter to PMDC acting president Prof Abdullah Jan Jaffer on Jan 19 regarding the election of PMDC president. The letter issued by Deputy Director-General Health Dr Capt Muhammad Raza stated that it had come to the notice of the ministry that the PMDC was convening a meeting of the council on Jan 26-27 and the election of PMDC president was planned to be conducted.
The DDGH stated that the health ministry had advised that the election of PMDC president may be postponed. Stating the reasons, the letter stated that the private medical and dental colleges had submitted representation to the health ministry for membership on the PMDC council and had requested to restrict the PMDC to hold election of president till finalization of their representation.
It also said that there were a number of membership positions lying vacant on the council, including that of the late president, which are to be filled in to complete the electoral college.
The letter further stated that the health ministry was considering seriously on the pending representation of private sector medical and dental institutions for allowing membership on the council and also felt that holding of the election of president would not be justified that in the presence of a number of vacant membership positions on the PMDC.
In the light of these points, the letter said: "The ministry advises that the election of president of the PMDC may be postponed and the vice-president may continue to perform the duties as acting president till such time a decision on the representation of private medical and dental colleges/institutions in taken by the government and also the PMDC make arrangements to get vacant membership positions filled up to complete the electoral college".
The PMDC officials, however, term the ministry's advice illegal and interference with the affairs of the PMDC. They say the provisionally recognized private medical and dental colleges/institutions cannot be granted PMDC council membership until they get full recognition.
They say that the health ministry cannot decide to give council membership but the PMDC council itself. They also say the legal opinion by PMDC member legal Justice Munir A Sheikh, who also served as Chief Justice of Pakistan, clearly states that the provisionally recognized institutions cannot be granted membership on the PMDC.
The legal opinion says: "Provisional recognition of any such institution in my view is temporary in nature, therefore, it cannot be allowed representation by electing a member of the council, which is a permanent body, as there is no concept of provisional membership of the council.
Such institutions should wait till the recognition is regularly made after which it can elect one member". Still, they say, the PMDC acting president has called the executive council meeting on Jan 25 (today) to consider the advice of the ministry regarding the postponement of PMDC president election.
Referring to the ministry's point that there were a number of membership positions lying vacant on the council, the council officials quote the PMDC Ordinance's sub-section-III of the section-III.
The section says: "No act done by the council shall be invalid on the grounds merely of the existence of any vacancy or any defect of the constitution of the council". DGH Dr Rajput was not available for comments.
