Senate body raps govt over Covid efforts

A Senate panel on Wednesday raised questions about the national health services ministry’s efforts to curb the spread of Covid-19 at the onset of the outbreak in the country.

During a meeting of the Standing Committee on National Health Services, Senator Mushtaq Ahmed asked the ministry’s officials as to why they had not set up quarantine centres at the time Covid-19 patients had started arriving in the country through the Taftan border crossing.

The meeting was presided over by the committee’s chairperson Khushbakht Shujaat. The committee also expressed its concerns over the sale of substandard medicines.

Senator Ahmed questioned the performance of the government, referring to videos of the treatment of people at a quarantine centre in Taftan and the state of affairs at cattle markets prior to Eidul Azha.

Special Assistant to the PM on National Health Services Dr Faisal Sultan informed the committee that the government had adopted an effective strategy to combat Covid-19 that had reduced coronavirus cases in the country.

“The facts and figures show the declining trend of coronavirus at all levels due to the prompt response of the government,” he added.

“All this became made possible because of team effort and the efficient work of the National Command and Operation Centre [NCOC] on Covid-19.”

The SAPM elaborated that the main focus of the strategy was to control the disease on one hand and maintaining business activities of small and poor traders on the other.

He said all federal and provincial institutions played a remarkable role under the NCOC against the disease.

He also acknowledged the role of frontline health workers.

“All possible measures were taken to control Covid-19 to avoid further load on the already burdened health system of the country.”

The committee was also informed that show-cause notices issued to 26 doctors of different provinces working at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) had been withdrawn immediately.

During the meeting, several members expressed their concerns over the unnecessary delay in addressing the issues of PIMS doctors including their promotion despite court orders and parliament directions.

Senator Usman Kakar raised an objection over the issuance of the notices to the 26 doctors from various provinces working at PIMS.

He said various administrative seats had been allocated to irrelevant and inexperienced people at PIMS and asked the committee to take notice of the matter.

Senator Sajjad Hussain Turi said that many senior doctors had been working at PIMS without promotion for the last 15 years.

He termed it a clear violation of their basic rights and unjustifiable. He asked the PIMS administration to immediately resolve its doctors' issues as per directions of the courts and submit a report to the committee within two weeks.

Senator Shafeeq Tareen demanded that the authorities concerned should appoint relevant and experienced people to key posts at PIMS to properly serve patients.

Senator Hidayat Ullah questioned as to why the PIMS administration was reluctant to implement the orders of the courts.

The committee’s chairperson said all genuine outstanding issues of doctors should be addressed for quality services at PIMS.

(With input from APP)