HYDERABAD: The Sindh government has reappointed an officer of health department to a “re-designated” post in the Liaquat University Hospital (LUH) Hyderabad, which had already been declared illegal by Sindh Services Tribunal and Supreme Court.

It appears the Sindh government is still working as per ‘wish list’ of the officer, Abdul Sattar Jatoi, to ensure he stayed in LUH. The term ‘wish list’ with regard to the officer was used in the verdict authored by then Chief Justice of Pakistan Gulzar Ahmed, who had heard Jatoi’s appeal against the tribunal’s order dated Sept 22, 2020.

The government issued a notification on July 27 posting Jatoi as ‘director of (admin, accounts & development) against an ‘existing vacancy’. The notification, on the face of it, is in violation of Sept 22 order of the tribunal and the apex court’s Jan 10, 2022 order passed on an appeal filed by Jatoi against the tribunal’s order.

By this reappointment, the government has also shown complete disregard to its own legislation i.e. Sindh Teaching Hospitals (Establishment of Management Board) Act 2020, which calls for appointment of “finance & administration directors, separately in teaching hospitals”.

Besides, the same officer has been posted again with dual charge of the posts vested in one despite the fact that Hospital Management Board has already initiated process or appointment of a director of finance in the LUH.

The government had removed Jatoi on July 1 this year as he, despite being a BS-19 rank, held a BS-20 post of director (administration, accounts and development, which was especially created for the officer) in violation of the SC order. He was demoted to BS-19 on May 16 after the SC’s Jan 10 order.

The SC headed by then Chief Justice of Pakistan Gulzar Ahmed had dismissed his appeal while upholding Sept 22 order of the tribunal that had set aside Jatoi’s promotion to BS-20 post of director, terming it as a “re-designation” of a BS-19 post.

“He used his influence with a religious party which finally worked and got himself reappointed,” said an officer.

He said that findings of an inquiry conducted by health department against Jatoi and then MS regarding release of Rs350m of LUH funds through a fake letter were lying with the government yet he was posted in the hospital.

The para-14 of the Sept 22 order of the tribunal said that “then the series of acts in favour of Abdul Sattar Jatoi taking him out of health department, ‘re-designating clinical post of LUH Hyderabad/Jamshoro and making him director (administration, accounts and development) were also illegal and in violation of the judgement”.

The SC bench in its Jan 10’s order said: “We find no illegality in impugned judgment of the tribunal and are not persuaded to interfere with the same. The appeal is, therefore, dismissed”.

The apex court noted in the verdict that through a notification dated July 2, 2013, competent authority eagerly complied with ‘such wish of appellant’ by inducting him in Provincial Secretariat Service cadre in a post equivalent to BS-19.

The appellant himself filed an application on July 25, 2013 to Chief Secretary Sindh, requesting “he may be posted/absorbed back against non-cadre position of LUH by re-designating existing post of BS-19 as director (administration, accounts and development).

On his request, a summary dated Dec 12, 2013 was floated for CM’s approval for re-designation of Additional MS (BS-19) post on non-clinical side as director. The SC said that through Nov 25, 2016 notification the appellant was absorbed as director.

“The wish list of the appellant did not end there and departmental authority continued to be too eager to accommodate him to the post of his own desire. For doing so, rules were amended on March 6, 2018. A person-specific amendment to the rules was made to accommodate him alone and the appellant, out of so many other batch mates in BS-19 granted promotion on June 1, 2018 from SB-19 to BS-20 and the said post was shown to be a post of BS-20,” said the SC.

The tribunal in its order set aside his promotion to BS-20 and re-designation of the AMS post as director. “It means the post of AMS in fact is to be revived but the government posted him to position already declared illegal,” said a doctor in health department.

Published in Dawn, July 29th, 2022