SARGODHA, Aug 7: The Pakistan Medical Association local chapter president has accused the monitoring and evaluation teams, comprising former servicemen, of misbehaving with doctors and harassing the lady health workers.

“The recruitment of retired army officials against monitoring posts is causing unrest among the doctors who have to put up with their misconduct,” Dr Sikandar Hayat Warraich said.

A few days ago, he said, retired army havaldar Mansha visited a basic health unit at 8-ML and insulted the medical officer and harassed a lady health worker. It had become a common practice all over the district where the monitoring officials were blackmailing the MOs and other staff, he alleged.

He said the havaldars were supposed to talk to an MO and they were not authorised to enter the rooms of female staff, but they were stepping out of the line without check.

He said an inquiry into alleged harassment and misconduct by the low-grade former army official was being supervised by the EDO (health) and a District Management Group official. Another former havaldar and some other people were now threatening the doctors and other health workers with removal from service for pursuing the case.

The PMA head said the doctors would take to the street if the government persisted with the low-rank officials for monitoring and evaluation. It should appoint army doctors for the job because the incumbents had become trouble-makers for the community, he said, demanding that the chief justice of Pakistan should take suo motu notice of this malpractice.