PA gives in to rumpus over PIC deaths
04 February, 2012
LAHORE: Commotion, altercation and indecent language once again ruled the Punjab Assembly proceedings when the session resumed on Friday after a gap of two days to debate the deaths of over 100 heart patients caused by reaction to drugs provided by the Punjab Institute of Cardiology. Opposition members kept targeting Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif instead of allowing the proceedings to continue, accusing him of being responsible for the drug reaction deaths and demanding his resignation. On the other hand, treasury members praised the working of the government, particularly the chief minister, saying the investigations were under way and action would be taken against those responsible after the inquiry report was presented. Law Minister Rana Sanaullah assured the house that the chief minister would come to the assembly on February 6 (Monday) to wind up the debate on the deaths of PIC patients himself. Despite this assurance, opposition members continued flaying the chief minister. The rumpus forced the speaker to adjourn the house proceedings for half-an-hour but the hullabaloo again resumed when the proceedings re-started. Opposition member Samina Khawar Hayat and the treasury's Sh Allauddin used indecent language against each other, turning the mood even uglier. Leader of the Opposition Raja Riaz accused the chief minister of being a missing person, demanding the speaker to order the IGP to produce the CM before the house. He also accused the CM of being the killer of thousands of patients who became victims of dengue virus and drug reaction deaths. Later, opposition members harshly criticised the CM for the neglect and criminal inefficiency that caused the recent deaths of the PIC patients and victims of dengue fever. PPP's Major (retd) Zulfiqar Gondal accused the PML-N government of making doctors and the health secretary scapegoats to cover up the inefficiency of the chief minister who held the health portfolio himself. He said the PPP accused the CM of being the killer of PIC patients symbolically since he was directly responsible for their deaths and had been running the affairs of the health ministry on an ad hoc basis. Demanding the immediate resignation of the chief minister, he expressed concern that millions of rupees of public money were being wasted on a health department which was actually working to kill people. Samina Khawar Hayat of the PML-Q reiterated her earlier remarks accusing the chief minister as being the killer of cardiac patients, and also alleged that rulers had spent the entire public funds to build roads to their palatial houses and towns. Sh Allauddin tried to defend the chief minister, which led to a verbal clash between the two in which both used indecent remarks against each other. The speaker ordered to expunge these remarks from the record. PML-Q's Amna Ulfat declared that the opposition would never allow the chief minister to run away from the deaths. Sh Allauddin defended the CM by saying that registering, licensing and pricing of drugs was the job of the federal government, and the opposition's allegations in this regard were baseless. He challenged that if these allegations were proved, he would resign from his seat. End.
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