Senior doctors at the Civil Hospital and other teaching institutions in Karachi have sharply reacted against the Sindh Governor's decision to ignore senior doctors in matters of postings and in giving them assignments of responsibilities.
The academics told Business Recorder on Thursday that the interference of Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ibad in medical teaching and training institutions was not a welcome step.
They said the governor had no idea of medical education, and his competence as a medical practitioner was also questionable, adding without having sufficient knowledge of the kind and quality of medical education was needed in Pakistan the governor was stepping in with "progressive ideas."
They said the medical education is a complex mix of activities for which reason the governor does not seem to be competent not to assess merit of a medical educationist and decide to place in a position of responsibilities.
They were discussing appointment of Dr Masood Hameed Khan as the vice-chancellor of the Dow Medical University.
They said the Dow Medical College (DMC) was not yet fully developed to be given the status of a medical university. Instead of granted university status to the DMC it would have been better to ask the federal government to grant the Jinnah Post-graduate Medical Center status of a university.
This issue had been under discussion for the last more than 25 years, they added.
The medical teachers said politics, in the neighbouring countries, had never been permitted to decide about the status and functioning of a teaching and training institution.
They said the appointment of junior doctor as the vice-chancellor would adversely affect the prestige of the DMC, and belittle its status in the eyes of the medical educationists in other countries.
They said the MBBS degree in Pakistan was already in disgrace because of the entire teaching, training and examinations system and grant of degrees had never been free of criticism.
It was time to introduce merit and scholarship in the existing public and private sector medical teaching institution instead of "sowing the seeds of incompetence."
They said the governors were chancellors of universities in Pakistan by virtue of their executive authorities, and not because of their excellence in academics, adding the chancellors ignoring merit and competence in educational institutions would only be doing disservice to education in Pakistan, which would be difficult to correct in times to come.
They have demanded of the governor to review his decision to indulge into politics of medical teachers.
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