PMA demands restoration of ‘original’ PMDC

KARACHI: The Pakistan Medical Association (PMA) has appealed to the government to implement the Islamabad High Court order and restore the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council.

An emergent meeting of the Pakistan Medical Association (PMA) was recently held at the PMA House. The meeting was attended by Dr S M Qaisar Sajjad, Secretary-General, PMA Centre, Dr Qazi M Wasiq, Treasurer, PMA Centre, Dr S Tipu Sultan, Dr Abdul Ghafoor Shoro, General-Secretary, PMA Karachi, Dr Shershah Syed, Dr Mirza Ali Azhar, Dr Hamid Manzoor, while Dr Ikram Ahmed Tunio, President, PMA Centre from Larkana, Dr Salma Aslam Kundi, President-Elect PMA Centre from Abbottabad, Dr Ashraf Nizami, Immediate Past President PMA Centre from Lahore, participated in the meeting via video call.

The Federal Government is manipulating and presenting a different picture of the PMDC to the Supreme Court of Pakistan. The Ministry of National Health Services (NHS), in an application to the Supreme Court, requested to replace the President of the PMDC, Justice (R) Shakirullah Jan, with Justice (R) Syed Zahid Hussain, because the President of the PMDC is physically incapacitated due to his old age and is unavailable for work. According to sources, Justice (R) Shakirullah Jan, joined his office on 8th April and started working for the revival of the council. The Ministry of NHS also wanted to replace a few other members.

This reflected that the Ministry’s intentions of wanting to control the PMDC. The Court rejected their plea to replace the PMDC President and members.

The PMA also rejected the manipulation of the government to get control over the PMDC. We request the government to let this body continue operating for the larger interest of medical education and the medical profession. We have always been demanding an independent, autonomous, transparent, and vibrant organization in the form of the PMDC.

“We demand the Chief Justice of Pakistan and Prime Minister of Pakistan to initiate an inquiry of the misleading statement of the Ministry of the National Health Services regarding the unavailability of the President of the PMDC,” said PMA.

-MN Report