The express tribune

Islamabad

The Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (Amendment) Bill 2014 was unanimously approved by the National Assembly Standing Committee on Health on Wednesday and will be tabled in the NA soon.

If approved by parliament, the bill will authorise the ministry of national health services, regulation and coordination (NHSRC) to look after the council’s administrative issues.

Following the passage of the bill, the ministry of NHSRC will be responsible for constituting the PMDC management committee, and will hold free and fair elections at the council within 120 days.

Meanwhile, members of the committee expressed displeasure over the ministry’s inability to repatriate the registrar to his parent department. “He should have been terminated by now — instead, he was sent on forced leave,” the committee stated. If the ministry continues to show such a non-serious attitude, many of the committee members will resign, they said.

Moreover, members of the committee including Dr Nisar Ahmed Jatt, Dr Zulfiqar Ali Bhatti and Dr Muhammad Azhar Khan Jadoon asked the ministry about its progress in resolving PMDC’s issues.

In response to the earlier question, State Minister for NHSRC Saira Afzal Tarar said her ministry was not authorised to remove the registrar as that is Capital Administration and Development Division’s (CADD) duty. A letter has been written to the Establishment Division mentioning the committee’s reservations, she assured.

Jatt, however, was of the view that the only way this system can be rid of corrupt people is to throw them out.

The committee also expressed concern over threats of imposition of travel restrictions on Pakistan due to the inadequate efforts in eradicating polio.

Although the chances of travel restrictions being imposed are high, said Tarar, the Pakistan government is trying to persuade the international community to refrain from taking this step.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 1st, 2014.