After eight continuous days of their protest, Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) employees on Friday called off protest on assurance from Health Minister Aamer Mehmood Kiani for reviewing government’s drafted proposal of running hospital through a Board of Governors (BoG).
The minister assured the protesters that they will be taken on board in a committee which will review the drafted proposal. “Five members from the PIMS employees would make part of the Committee and all concerns will be rectified”, the minister claimed.
The employees used to protest three hours daily in the hospital since last seven days against the proposed law. However, the authorities concerned paid no heed toward them.
Instead listening employees, the PIMS administration suspended three low cadres employees over their involvement in the protest were, the administration pretended, they chanted slogans against health ministry senior officials during protest.
On Thursday, the protestors announced for complete closure of Out-Patient Department (OPD) of the hospital and it will be remained close till acceptance of their demand and restoration of the suspended employees.
After the announcement, Minister for National Health Services (NHS) Aamer Mehmood Kiani personally reached at hospital and hold dialogue with the protestors to listen their grievances.
In his address to protesters, the health minister reaffirmed that all suspended employees will be restored immediately
In his address to protestors, the minister first reaffirmed that all suspended employees will be restored immediately. Interestingly, he claimed “the proposal for devising BoG was a draft, not a law yet to be approved”.
Besides, Kiani said the purpose of the draft was to give reforms in the PIMS as it’s a sole health institution in the capital which provides best health facilities to the people.
While appreciating the minister in person appearance at the hospital and showing leniency, an official said wishing not to be named that it was welcoming gesture as well protecting measure for thousands of patients would possible suffer in case of closure of OPD. “As many as 10,000 patients visit the OPD in PIMS daily”, he explained.
According to the available information, the incumbent government had drafted a proposal for running the hospital through a BoG which will have representation from parliament as well as health and finance experts. Appointment of a chief operating officer, who can be from outside the hospital, for running the affairs of the hospital was among the clauses of the tabled proposal.
The planned strategy was an adoptive measure from the model which before this implemented in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in the last regime. According to the incumbent federal government which imposed the said model in the KPK, the model yielded very successful results in the province.
On the occasion, the health minister also promised that the status of the PIMS will remain intact. “The government will not intrude the current status of the hospital and it’s all employees will remain as government officials under civil service act”, he committed.
According to available information, similar protests by the employees also observed in previous government tenure against almost same nature of issues. Once the last government of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) attempted to merge Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Medical University with PIMS which perturbed the employees and they held strikes. After many weeks of their protest, the government bowed to knee and took back the decision through legislation from parliament.
Besides this, according to Dr Asfandyar Khan who played a major role in leading such restoration campaigns, four attempts had been made in the past to privatise the hospital. The attempts foiled after strong reaction from the employees. Interestingly, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf had supported the employees on these occasions.
Published in Daily Times, February 23rd 2019.
