ISLAMABAD/LAHORE, Feb 9: The Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP) issued show-cause notices on Thursday to medical centres allegedly involved in malpractices in mandatory pre-departure medical tests for intending immigrants to Gulf countries.

An inquiry, conducted by Nadia Nabi and Noman A. Farooqi of the CCP, found that every intending immigrant was required to go through a pre-departure medical test conducted only by the GCC-approved medical centres to procure visa for GCC countries, except the UAE.

The inquiry was conducted in response to a complaint by the Pakistan Overseas Employment Promoters Association (POEPA) that GCC medical centres working under their respective GAMCA had resorted to cartelisation to allocate customers among themselves.

The report shows that no disciplinary action was taken against a particular medical centre involved in malpractices.

At present, there are 20 such medical centres divided in five regions - Islamabad/Rawalpindi, Lahore, Peshawar, Karachi and Multan.

In each region, there is one GAMCA centre to oversee the working of GCC medical centres. The GAMCA also issues registration numbers to intending emigrants and refer them to the GCC medical centres for tests to ensure equal distribution system among them.

The practices of territorial division and equal distribution of customers and fixing the fee, prima facie, restrict the choice of customers and competition among medical centres for price and quality of services and, therefore, are in contravention to Section 4(1) and 4 (2)(a),(b) and (c) of the Competition Act.

Most of the intending immigrants to GCC countries are those people who procure visa for menial labour. These immigrants bring a significant amount of remittance from GCC countries to Pakistan, between $6 billion and $8 billion a year. The inquiry report said the equal distribution system was introduced in 1999 when the medical centres complained to the executive board of the GCC health ministers council that one GCC medical centre was getting more business by paying commission to recruiting agents to refer customers.

The report highlights that no disciplinary action was taken against that particular medical centre and it still continues to work.

However, the inquiry report concludes that practices of territorial division, equal distribution of customers to medical centres and fixing the fee prima facie restricts the choice of customers and competition among medical centres for price and quality of services.

"Repeat medical tests conducted to charge extra fee as the customer declared unfit once has no choice but to go through a repeat test at the same medical centre," the report said, adding, "under the given facts and circumstances in the inquiry report, it appears that the GCC medical centres and GAMCAs are subjecting a vulnerable segment of society to unfair conditions."

On the other hand, the GCC medical centres are earning a huge amount through pre-departure medical tests.

In three years (2008-2010), medical centres only in the region of Peshawar, Karachi and Islamabad/Rawalpindi earned Rs1.8 billion, excluding repeat tests whereas medical centres in Lahore and Multan regions earned Rs144 million in 2010-2011.

GAMCAs and GCC medical centers have been given 14 days to reply to show-cause notices to avail opportunity of being heard by the CCP.