Body fails to start probe into Rs930m purchases at AMTI

ABBOTTABAD: A fact-finding committee constituted by the Board of Governors (BoG) at Ayub Medical Teaching Institution has failed to start its proceedings to probe the alleged unlawful purchases of medicines and equipment worth Rs930 million in Ayub Teaching Hospital while the office of BoG was shut by the hospital administration and its secretary suspended here on Thursday.

The four-member inquiry committee headed by BoG member Asad Khan Jadoon was mandated to probe the matter and fix the responsibilities. Other members of the committee were Prof Dr Sajid Kazmi, Prof Dr Haq Nawaz and M Zeeshan.

When Jadoon reached the BoG office, he was informed by the staff that the BoG office had been locked by the security staff on the orders of the hospital director.Similarly, BoG Secretary Hamid Mehmood was handed a suspension letter by the acting hospital director despite the fact that he had no legal authority to take any action against the BoG secretary. The letter signed by Dr Ather Lodhi was countersigned by three other board members, including Ayaz Khan, Javed Turk and Dr Aftab Rabbani.

BoG member and chairman of the legal committee Asad Khan Jadoon intervened and directed the security in charge to refrain from taking any illegal steps. He withdrew the suspension letter of the secretary and wrote to the hospital director, citing Section 6, Subsection 10 of the 2015 Act, which states that the BoG secretary is an employee of the board and not part of the MTI, as mentioned in the MTI Act. The letter was also signed by BoG members Asad Khan Jadoon, Fawad Saleh, and Syed Jaffar Shah.

The notification of the fact-finding committee, dated May 29, 2024, stated that purchases of electrical store and medical store items, surgical and pathological items, IT equipment, and medicine store items were made without prior approval of the BoG and against prevailing rules.

The board constituted an inquiry committee comprising Prof Dr Sajid Kazmi, Prof Dr Haq Nawaz, and M Zeeshan, with Asad Khan Jadoon serving as chairman.The committee was instructed to submit a report with recommendations and responsibilities within 10 days. In an emergency meeting of the BoG, various urgent issues were discussed.

Board members Syed Jafar Hussain Shah, Asad Khan Jadoon, and Fawad Saleh attended the meeting, along with Board Secretary Hamid Mehmood and Coordinator Dr Abid Khawaj.Three members, Ayaz Khan, Dr Aftab Rabbani, and Javed Ahmed Turk, did not attend the meeting. The resignation of Board Chairman Mushtaq Jadoon has been formally accepted by the Health Ministry following his appointment as Advisor Federal Ombudsman in Peshawar.

The meeting, presided over by Board Member Syed Jafar Shah, highlighted the reasons for the emergency session, noting that the previous day’s meeting was postponed due to the hospital administration locking the BoG office. As a result, the meeting was relocated. The board formed a three-member committee to address issues raised by the medical director about cleanliness and other matters.

Prof Dr Shehla Noor, Prof Dr Aftab Alam, and Prof Dr Adil Naseer were included in this committee, which was expected to submit its report within 10 days.The hospital’s security officer has been issued a show-cause notice and must provide an explanation within three days for sealing the BoG office and disrupting the meeting.