July 28, 2006	Friday	Rajab 1, 1427

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ISLAMABAD, July 27: The government has appointed a three-member inquiry commission to probe into the affairs of the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC), an informed source told Dawn here Thursday.

Justice Amin Hani Muslim of the Sindh High Court, Surgeon General Lt Gen Syed Afzal Ahmed and Prof Mahmood Chaudhry, a representative of the PMDC will comprise the commission, which is likely to complete its findings and submit recommendations in six weeks time.

Mushrooming of unrecognized medical institutions in the private sector has become a thorny issue, with the PMDC holding the private sector responsible for setting up medical colleges without proper infrastructure while the private sector accused the council of discriminating against them and recognising public sector medical colleges with similar deficiencies.

PMDC refuses to give representation to private sector institutions on its 55-member council on the pretext that once let in, the private sector would out number them and could even amend laws in their favour. PMDC claims that it can deny recognition, but has no mechanism to check proliferation of medical colleges in the private sector.

On the other hand heads of private sector institutions consider their right to become council members instead of holding proper elections and fulfilling criteria set out by the council for setting up medical colleges.

Students are, however, the ultimate sufferers because of the tussle between the council and the private sector. This row has put at stake the future of a large number of students who studied in private sector colleges in the hope that PMDC would grant accreditation to their institutions.

A large number of litigations are also pending in different courts.

Meanwhile, the health ministry believes that the PMDC Ordinance is outdated and needs to be amended since private sector institutions cannot be ignored, especially when there is already a dearth of doctors. The ministry believes that private institutions must be made part of the mainstream though by improving their standard.

Events of May last, when a commotion between the representatives of the private and public medical institutions deferred the 106th session of the PMDC forced the government to intervene and order for the commission of inquiry to probe the affairs of the PMDC.

Appointed under Section 35 of the PMDC Ordinance 1962, the law empowers the federal government to set up a commission whenever it feels that the council is not complying with any of the provision of this ordinance.

Such a commission enjoys the power of a civil court under the Civil Procedure Code (CPC) and can even administer oath to enforce the attendance of witnesses and production of documents.

According to the source, the PMDC has so far failed to constitute from amongst its members an executive committee, or appoint a registrar to act as a secretary or treasurer, etc.