PESHAWAR: The health department has recommended termination of nursing director of Khyber Teaching Hospital Peshawar in the light of the inquiries ordered by Supreme Court.

The health authorities have spared more than 12 other officials, who were found to have been appointed in violation of merit, according to sources.

The Board of Governors (BoG) of KTH has ignored the department’s letter.

“This refers to old and rebutted review. We have replied to the letter,” Dr Faisal Sultan, the chairman of KTH BoG, told Dawn briefly.

The inquiries into the top appointments in the medical teaching institutions were conducted by health department on the directives of Supreme Court.

Sources claim over 12 officials appointed in violation of merit have been spared

The inquiries, conducted in September 2018, have found appointment of at least 25 high ranking employees in three Peshawar-based medical teaching institutions — Khyber Teaching Hospital, Lady Reading Hospital and Hayatabad Medical Complex, in violation of merit but the health department sent recommendation to chairman of Board of Governors (BoG) of the hospital to implement the inquiry report about the nursing director only.

The Supreme Court ordered the health department that the appointments made in violation of merit should be corrected. However, the health department has recommended compliance with the inquiry only about KTH nursing director, who it said was appointed without having relevant qualifications.

The recommendation was made on November 22, more than 15 months after the completion of the inquiry reports. “Why one person has been singled out and others have been spared,” questioned the sources.

The inquiry found that Rehmatullah, who claimed PhD degree in his application, didn’t possess the same and lacked other qualification including registration of Pakistan Nursing Council and relevant experience, according to a summary of the department sent to BoG.

Sources said that the recommendation of action against the nursing director in such a way raised questions as he was not the only one to have been recruited out of merit.

The department has also recommended that the salaries he received during his three-year term form 2016 to 2019 as nursing director of KTH may be recovered from him and members of the selection committee.

However, the selection committee is consisted of volunteers and such recommendations will cause problems for the medical teaching institutions as in nobody would be willing to come from other cities to Peshawar to hold interview in future.

Sources said that the nursing director ranked third on merit in the interview but the first and second candidates on merit declined the salary package and he was chosen ultimately.

He was re-appointed on temporary basis after completion of three years in April. The interview for new one has been scheduled for December 19.

Sources said that it was unlikely that the BoG would comply with the inquiry report on the directive of the health department because under the law the MTI-covered institutions were autonomous to take decisions.

According to the Medical Teaching Institutions Reforms Act 2015, the health department has very little role in the administrative and financial affairs of the hospitals where the law is in place.

“The BoG will be right in questioning the health department that why one man has been singled out among more than a dozen appointments in violation of merit,” said sources.

The Supreme Court has twice asked the health department to submit compliance report regarding the findings of the probe but to no avail.

Published in Dawn, December 13th, 2019