ISLAMABAD: The Senate unanimously adopted a bill on Friday providing for the setting up of the military-run National University of Medical Sciences (NUMS) after an assurance by the government that subsequent amendments would be incorporated into it without any opposition.

Senators Farhatullah Babar of PPP and Maulana Attaur Rahman of the JUI-F had moved amendments calling for overarching oversight of the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) — a body set up by parliament to regulate all aspects of medical education ranging from academic standards to qualifications of academics in all medical institutions of the country.

Also read: Senate committee passes NUMS bill

Senator Babar and Senator Talha Mehmood on behalf of Maulana Attaur Rahman withdrew their amendments after Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif gave a categorical assurance that the government would not oppose the amendments brought by the two senators.

During discussion on amendments, several senators were of the view that NUMS be subjected to rules of the regulator — the PMDC. The defence minister said that if the amendments were passed now they would delay the final adoption of the bill as it would have to be sent back to the National Assembly which had already passed it.

Explaining the rationale for amendments, Mr Babar said that while no one objected to a military-run medical university, it must be subject to rigorous oversight of the PMDC like any other medical university in the county.

He said that although there were several clauses in the bill that merited review, all these could be condoned if the university was brought under the oversight of the PMDC.

He said the bill placed vast powers in the hands of the administration. Giving examples, he said, the pro-chancellor, who is also the chief of army staff, not only had the powers to appoint members of the policy-making body, the board of governors and the vice chancellor but also had powers to sack them. He also had powers to direct the board of governors to reconsider any of its decisions and in the event of non-compliance could serve it with a show-cause notice and appoint a review panel over the head of the governing body.

The qualifications required for critical positions were loosely defined such as “notable academician with finest credentials”.

The PMDC is the regulator and its role cannot be entrusted to the administration of a medical university even if it was run by the military. The administrator of the university could not be allowed to become its regulator also, he said.

He said that if the principle of oversight by lawful civilian institutions over the military-run medical university was not accepted it would become a precedent for the future and give rise to parallel and competing centres of power.

“The vote today is not merely over the oversight role of the PMDC; the vote today is about the primacy and ascendancy of legally established civilian regulatory institutions,” he said.

Mr Babar had also dissented when the bill was considered by the Senate Defence Committee about a week ago and his dissenting note was made part of the report that was presented by the Chairman of the Committee, Mushahid Hussain Sayed, in the Senate.

Published in Dawn, October 10th , 2015

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