Senior govt officials pay price for conducting inquiries

PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has set up a strange example by making senior government officials pay the price for carrying out inquiries assigned to them by none other than Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar and the chief secretary.

Former Health Secretary Mohammad Abid Majeed and a senior physician Prof Intekhab Alam were made an example for others.

Abid Majeed was accused of submitting the inquiry report at the Supreme Court of Pakistan.

Dr Intekhab Alam was a member of the same inquiry committee which the chief secretary had formed after the chief justice had taken notice of various human rights violation cases in the Medical and Teaching Institutions (MTIs) and ordered an inquiry to probe the alleged irregularities committed in key appointments in these institutions.

There were reports that Dr Intekhab Alam was recently forced to resign as chief executive of Postgraduate Medical Institute (PGMI).

Other members of the inquiry committee were special secretary health, additional secretary finance, additional secretary establishment and chief executive officer Postgraduate Medical Institute (PGMI).

The committee despite strong resistance from certain quarters conducted its inquiries and later submitted its report to the caretaker government and also Supreme Court of Pakistan.

The caretaker government didn’t take any action on the inquiry report that had pointed out serious irregularities in appointments.

The caretaker government had dissolved all Boards of Governors (BoGs), but left it to the next government to consider the inquiry report and take appropriate action suggested therein.

However, the incumbent PTI government just did the opposite and to the astonishment of many brought back most members of the previous BoGs and decided not to replace any person in the MTIs.

It ignored the inquiry report and took no action against the officials proven guilty in the inquiry report. The govt also acted in haste to show the door to provincial secretary Health Abid Majeed and Dr Intekhab Alam. The government suspected that these two gentlemen had played a major role in the inquiry committee.

Some of the officials told The News that Prof Intekhab Alam had allegedly tried to explain his position to the government that he had not signed the inquiry report, but it didn’t help him save his position.

Dr Nausherwan Burki, the man behind the health reforms in KP and cousin of Prime Minister Imran Khan, was reportedly misguided by certain people, mostly by young doctors of Insaf Doctors Forum (IDF) about Abid Majeed.

The last Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf government had appointed Abid Majeed at a time when six senior officers failed to work with the previous PTI government. Dr Burki landed in a court battle as the doctors went on to challenge MTI Acts 2015 in the Peshawar High Court coupled with protests and agitation in the public sector hospitals.

Abid Majeed opened the doors of his office to all the doctors and health workers and helped the government come out of the crisis.

After firing him as a secretary Health, he was made Officer on Special Duty (OSD). And recently when the chief secretary issued transfer and posting orders of other officers, Abid Majeed was posted secretary Excise and Taxation.

However, within a few days, the chief secretary withdrew his previous order, only for Abid Majeed, and cancelled his notification as secretary Excise and Taxation.

These government officials were aware of the consequences of the task they were given by Chief Justice of Pakistan Miann Saqib Nisar, but they still performed their professional responsibilities.

Now they are paying the price for doing the job assigned to them by the chief justice and chief secretary.