MARDAN: Patients and their family members have been suffering owing to infighting in the members of Board of Governors of Mardan Medical Complex, according to sources.

They said that the members of Board of Governors (BoG) of the major teaching hospital, Mardan Medical Complex, were entangled in infighting and they even didn’t tolerate each other’s presence. Other BoGs of medical teaching institutions in the province have usually seven members but the board of Mardan Medical Complex has nine members.

Recently, two members of BoG were removed and provincial government appointed two new ones. However, the removed members regained their positions through court, sparking a tug-of-war in the BoG.

The restoration of two members by court caused problems to BoG to hold its routine meetings. However, after lengthy consultations, the BoG chairman and his allies made efforts to gather all nine members and a meeting was eventually held in early June.

Chairman rejects differences, saying they enjoy cordial relations

But the minutes of the meeting are yet to be released. Another meeting of the BoG was scheduled in the current month, but a letter, sent by advocate general of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, told it that the board could not legally hold any meeting or make decisions with nine members. The letter said that any such meeting or decisions would be considered illegal. The scheduled meeting was cancelled after arrival of the letter.

“Now the matter of the two board members is back in court, with the next hearing scheduled for late August. This means that the BoG is unlikely to hold any meetings for at least the next two months, leaving the MTI effectively in suspension. As a result, many important matters of the hospital are stalled,” said sources.

They said that only two members of BoG belonged to Mardan while the rest of them hailed from other districts. “How can the residents of Mardan expect effective healthcare policies from such a board,” they questioned.

Sources said that work was under way on Cath Laboratory and Benazir Bhutto Hospital project. They said that projects like establishment of dental college, cardiac centre and third phase of the expansion of the hospital required solid policy direction.

“The hospital is being run by an interim and acting medical director and hospital director, who lack the authority and competence to make key decisions,” they said. They said that the adviser to chief minister on health, Ihtisham Khan, who belonged to Mardan should intervene to resolve those issues.

“I am surprised to hear the word infighting. Difference of opinions on various issues can hardly be called infighting. We enjoy good and cordial relations,” said Arshad Javaid, the chairman of BoG, when contacted by this scribe.

He said that at present the BOG was advised not to call any meeting but it was not because of the alleged infighting. He said that the cause of not holding meetings was the number of BoG members. “The high court has issued stay order about the honourable members, who were de-notified by government and replaced by two other new members. Now the number of BoG members has reached nine instead of seven,” he added.

The BoG chairman hoped that either the high court or the government would resolve the issue soon.

Dr Fazil, the hospital director of Mardan Medical Complex, told this scribe that though the present hospital director and medical director were working on acting charge basis, yet they were holding routine meetings for provision of the best healthcare facilities to patients.

He said that acting posts were not affecting their actions and steps taken for the benefit of patients and their family members. “We, in our acting tenure, have launched treatment of cardiac diseases including angiography on Sehat Cards,” he claimed.

Dr Fazil rejected the allegations that they were enjoying privileges of their positions without delivering. “It is totally wrong,” he claimed. He said that both the acting hospital director and medical director were not enjoying privileges and extra salary or any other benefits of their posts.

Published in Dawn, July 25th, 2025