“Both Shias and Sunnis wanted it to be constructed in their areas,” Gulbar Khan.
Regional Health Minister Gulbar Khan has sought support from politicians to ensure work on Gilgit-Baltistan’s (G-B) first cardiology centre begins immediately.
The construction of the proposed cardiology facility could not start earlier due to a sectarian dispute over its location since the past decade. “Both Shias and Sunnis wanted it to be constructed in their areas,” Khan said on Saturday.
“That’s something we need to sort out with the help of political representatives so that construction can begin,” he told The Express Tribune.
If a cardiology centre is built in Gilgit, it will be the first in the entire region. Presently, patients suffering from heart diseases have to be referred to Islamabad for treatment.
The minister warned patients would continue to suffer if consensus between the two communities is not reached. Khan had also raised the issue in the G-B assembly after lawmakers demanded an explanation about the delay in construction.
“I request Gilgit-based lawmakers to play their role in settling the issue,” he said, referring to politicians including Minister Didar Ali, MPA Raziuddin and Deputy Speaker Jamil Ahmed.
Regarding charging patients for services offered in government hospitals, the minister said the fee is being waived to make sure free treatment is provided.
In addition, Khan said services of 1,385 lady health workers (LHW) have also been regularised. The LHWs had recently boycotted a polio vaccination drive in G-B to press the government to give them permanent jobs.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 27th, 2013.
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Hate and mistrust thereafter, as seen has resulted in delay in establishing a cardiology center whose services will be available to all irrespective of the ethnicity and class. Time to learn. the lesson.