Federal health ministry posts out ex-minister’s ‘key aides’

ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of National Health Services on Monday repatriated two key aides of former health minister Abdul Qadir Patel to their parent departments.

Soon after the dissolution of National Assembly and completion of tenure of Abdul Qadir Patel as federal health minister on August 9, the Ministry of Health cancelled all the recruitment process in the PIMS, Federal Government Poly Clinic, NIH Islamabad and all the development projects of the ministry after questions were raised on recruitments from BPS-1 to BPS-16.

One of the key aides of former minister, Muhammad Imran Ali alias Imran Tipu, who was serving as director to health minister, was repatriated through a notification by the ministry, while Salahuddin Qureshi, another aide of the former minister, was also barred from entering the ministry.

“The services of Muhammad Imran Ali, presently working as director (BS-19/Non-Medical) are repatriated to his parent department as additional director (BS-19/Public Relations), Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Medical University (SZAMBU) Islamabad and is relieved from the ministry with immediate effect,” a notification by the Federal Ministry of Health said.

Similarly, Salahuddin Qureshi, an employee of the National Assembly of Pakistan, who was serving with former federal health minister Abdul Qadir Patel as personal assistant, was asked not to enter the offices of the ministry as he was not on its payroll, an official of the NHS,R&C told ‘The News’.

The ministry had earlier removed five favourite section officers (SOs), serving on the key positions in the federal health ministry who had been in the ‘good books’ of the former minister.

“Newly-appointed caretaker Health Minister Dr Nadeem Jan and his team worked late night in the ministry on Monday to post out aides of former health minister Abdul Qadir Patel. People are being posted out of the ministry, while those posted in the allied departments, hospitals and medical councils are also being identified,” an official of the federal health ministry informed.

The health ministry official said several heads will roll in various departments, including Pakistan Nursing Council, Pharmacy Council, Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC), Federal Directorate of Immunisation (FDI) Islamabad, Common Management Unit (CMU) as well as federal healthcare facilities.

“All those posted on key positions in violation of the merit would be replaced with competent and deserving people,” the health ministry official added.

Sources close to former health minister Patel, however, stated that transfers in the health ministry are the new administration’s prerogative. They said it would be wrong to assume that the former health minister patronised some official, adding that nothing illegal took place in the ministry under Patel.