Amid health ministry’s devolution, NICVD wins stay order to retain status quo

A press statement claims that the institution cannot be placed under provincial control.

KARACHI:

In another twist of events following the controversial devolution of the health ministry, the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases (NICVD) has won a stay order on their petition to stay an autonomous body under the federal government.

The hospital receives a small amount of funds in grants from the Centre but mainly generates its own funds. With this status, the hospital’s administration was surprised when they received the notification for the institute’s deputation to the Sindh government. “We are all employees of NICVD, which is an autonomous body not under direct federal control. Therefore we cannot be transferred or sent on deputation anywhere,” said a member of the hospital’s administration, requesting anonymity.

A press statement by the hospital explains their stance: “Since the status of the institute is clearly defined as an autonomous body under the federal government under the 8th amendment, it cannot be taken over by the provincial government under the 18th constitutional amendment. The devolution process can pertain to the subject of health, but not to the autonomy of the institute, which was taken over by the federal government, prior to which it functioned efficiently as an entirely autonomous body for more than a decade.”

A petition expressing the same stance was filed on Tuesday and managed to acquire the stay order, confirmed NICVD’s executive direction Prof. Khan Shah Zaman. However, when a copy of the stay order was requested, the hospital refused to share the document; it also refrained from revealing the name of its representative legal adviser and law firm. Additionally, the court’s cause list for July 12 has no mention of any appearance by the NICVD.

NICVD paramedics expressed their opposition to this apparent development by staging a protest. “A baseless rumour about NICVD’s privatisation began spreading and since most of the paramedics have political affiliations they protest for their own agendas,” a member of the administration said. “But since NICVD is autonomous, neither the hospital nor its employees can be sent under the provincial set-up.”

A meeting of the executive director with officers from grades 1 to 18 at the hospital is scheduled take place on Thursday.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 14^th, 2011.