ISLAMABAD – Senate Chairman Mian Raza Rabbani on Friday deferred a bill to amend the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) Ordinance, 1962 till next session due to opposition by the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) senators.
The bill was moved by Minister of State for National Health Services Regulations and Coordination Saira Afzal Tarar on Friday. She said it was not a government bill and has equal representation of all provinces, adding that the bill was approved twice by the standing committee so it should be considered.
Participating in the debate Opposition Leader in Senate, Senator Aitzaz Ahsan and other senators of the PPP said the bill was against the 18th amendment and it would negate autonomy of the provinces. They said the matter should be referred to the Council of Common Interest (CCI) for detail discussion and then come to the parliament. They said although there was equal representation of all provinces in the senate but smaller provinces would raise objections as decision making power would be transferred to the federal government.
The senators from treasury benches said the bill should be passed as it was necessary for bringing improvement in the PMDC. Azam Swati said there was no need to send the bill to the CCI and assured his support to the government. Minister for Law Zahid Hamid said the bill should be deferred till next session of the senate.
