Students, YDA activists clash

LAHORE:The activists of Young Doctors Association (YDA), Punjab and the students and graduates of King Edward Medical University (KEMU) clashed at Mayo Hospital on Wednesday over the issue of protest against the university/hospital administration and Punjab government for non-provision of personal protective equipment to the doctors treating the coronavirus patients in public sector hospitals of the province.

“We, the Kemcolians, abhor politics and have always been at an arm’s length from all the protests and these political gimmicks. But we are continuously being denied justice and are being forced by the hooligans of YDA and administration to come out of hospital and take to roads,” said the students and graduates of KEMU after the clash with the YDA activists in Mayo Hospital.

They alleged, “The YDA miscreant attacked our colleagues Dr Mazhar Rafique, Dr Faheem Mahr and Dr Sardar Nouman Afzal on the premises of the university. Dr Gada-e-Hussain and Dr Waqar have got the life threats from YDA hooligans. Dr. Waqar and Dr Mehr Faheem’s younger brother have been beaten up by YDA in Gawalmandi at his residence. YDA is also blackmailing the Mayo Hospital MS, and to our dismay, the hospital administration is dancing to their tunes.”

The students and graduates of KEMU said that King Edward Medical College has 155 year long history, saying, “We are known as the best medical institute in Punjab and this is not possible without our teachers. We pledge to stand firm against a few miscreants of Young Doctors Association (YDA) to show solidarity to their professor and fellow colleagues, who have been badly beaten on the premises of university.” They said, “We demandour university administration to hasten the legal proceedings, announce their decision and take appropriate strict disciplinary action against these hooligans who locked professor, as soon as possible, with their rustication. Anything less than that will not be tolerable and will force us to stage a protest on The Mall.”

“We have forwarded application for FIR but still no FIR is being lodged. We request the university to take up this matter as well. We also request the IG Punjab to direct SHO concerned to register FIR. We demand our university to provide security to doctors on the premises of university to avoid such incident in future.”

Earlier, speaking at a press conference held at Piccadily Canteen on Wednesday, Grand Health Alliance (GHA) office-bearers along with the participation of YDA Vice-President Dr Shoaib Niazi, Dr Mahmood, YDA office-bearer and Staff Nurse Nasreen and others condemned the government for not providing protective gear to the doctors and not conducting tests of the doctors, nurses and paramedical staff to rule out presence of disease among the medical staff working on the frontline to treat the coronavirus patients. “We have been protesting against government’s apathy at Health Secretariat for the last 14 days, but it neither moved the health authorities nor the Punjab government representatives to address the issues of doctors and medical staff working in the midst of COVID19 crisis in Punjab,” they lamented.

While pointing out that most of the 1,247 ventilators in Punjab are out of order, the GHA office-bearers questioned disappearance of the protective gear which came from China, Turkey and other countries as medical personnel were forced to work without protection.

Later, the GHA office-bearers lighted candles in memory of doctors and nurses who laid down their lives while discharging their duties to provide treatment to coronavirus patients outside the office of Specialised Healthcare and Medical Education (SHC&ME) Secretary.