IP Exclusive: PMC allegedly concealing records to hide paper trail of corruption
By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: The functionaries of Pakistan Medical Council (PMC) are removing the official records of the institution from its premises to hide their corruption and wrongdoing, Independent Pakistan can report.
PMC was chartered by the government of ousted prime minster Imran Khan after it abolished Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC). The new government is expected to abolish PMC to clear the way for the restoration of the former regulator of the medical profession.
Highly sensitive and confidential records of PMC are being transported to an unknown location, reliable sources within PMC told Independent Pakistan.
The records, being moved to a rented warehouse near Sangjani, Islamabad, include personal files of registered medical and dental practitioners, and records of Medical and Dental College Admission Test (MDCAT) exams conducted under PMC, college records, and other sensitive files.
The administration of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is said to be probing the alleged corruption in PMC. The unexplained urgency surrounding the moving of records betrays the nervousness of PMC management against this backdrop, which in turn may be an indication of the massive scale of things they have to hide.
Allegedly, PMC was plagued by massive corruption including largescale embezzlement of funds while awarding the MDCAT contract to favoured company for conducting medical and Dental colleges admission tests.
At the time, PMC had attracted widespread criticism for floating what some said what a tender “tailor-made” to favour a little-known company called TEPS, or Testing and Evaluation Platform (SMC-PVT) Limited.
The incumbent government has received multiple complaints against PMC management for alleged corruption in award of contract to what has been described as an unregistered and inexperienced firm. What is more, TEPS was paid hundreds of millions of rupees in advance.
The Matter was also discussed and brought into the notice of National Assembly Standing Committee on Health during the time of the previous government. An enquiry was also held, surfacing the fact that huge amounts of money had been looted in the name of MDCAT exam contract by TEPS, and that PMC had flouted rules to award the contract to TEPS.
The PMC is said to own four properties in Islamabad, among them two houses in sector G-10/4, a guesthouse in the basement of PMC headquarters, and a bungalow at Sector F-10. A portion of a house in sector G-10/4 houses part of official record, but that is about it. It is not at all clear why these properties cannot be used for safekeeping of the records being moving to a third-party location.
Contacted for clarification, a PMC official categorically denied the records were being moved to a rented warehouse at Sangjani, but said the records being removed to “a suitable place for safety and security purposes”.
Copyright © 2021 Independent Pakistan | All rights reserved
