PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Health Care Commission, established in 2015 to operate as independent entity and regulate diagnostic and healthcare outlets in the province, has started working under the health department illegally, according to sources.

The commission’s illegitimate working has also beset the architects of the law meant to establish an autonomous body free of health department’s control to ensure reforms and improve patients’ care, they said.

In November 2019, all the three top administrative officers of the commission, including chief executive officer, additional director monitoring and evaluation and director operations completed their tenure and left HCC.

Health department quickly deputed officers on the posts in violation of the law under which new appointment should be made through proper competitive process. There is no room for such postings in the law, the sources said.

Sources say officers deputed on key posts in violation of law

The commission began operations in 2016 when the PTI government repealed Health Regulatory Authority Act, 2002 and replaced it with HCC Act, 2015 after which it became an independent body and went out of control of health department.

The recent appointments of CEO and others by health department are unlawful because HCC doesn’t come under the former’s control after enforcement of the new law according which it is governed by Board of Commissioners (BoC) only, the sources say.

As a matter of law, out of the required 10 members, six are still there as others have resigned, they add. The actions taken by health department are illegal and the existing BoC is incomplete and inactive board but was still there.

The board members are appointed by a search and nomination council under health minister, to give guidelines for implementing government’s agenda through officers.

In October, the CEO of the commission, Azaar Sardar, had informed the government about looming human resource shortage after leaving of the officers on November 20, saying there would be no executive authority to perform duties and severe crises would come.

“There will be complete halt. There will be no operations. Process of salaries, payments, registration and renewal of the health facilities apart from basic work to seal, de-seal and initiate compliant-based action is destined to come to a full stop,” he had said.

In the same month, the chairman of the board, Dr Mohammad Rehman, resigned citing unwarranted intervention by health department to block commission’s moves to make appointments on crucial staff a reason of his decision.

He said that shortage of staff was hampering their efforts to regulate functioning of healthcare facilities to provide quality treatment and investigative services to the people at the government and private hospitals.

Sources said that more than 15 positions stayed vacant since the commission started operations five years ago mainly due to lack of coordination with health department. Only five officers of the total 29 advertised positions had been filled in 2016. Key posts couldn’t be filled despite advertising them thrice, they added.

In April 2019, advertisement to recruit 56 people was stopped by health department, according to BoC.

Prof Nausherwan Burki, the chairman of Prime Minister Task Force on Health, who, is also behind the enforcement of HCC Act, conceded about the crisis faced by the commission and said the they were concerned about the commission.

“I am looking into it,” he replied briefly when asked if he was concerned over the matter.

Published in Dawn, January 2nd, 2020