PA passes unanimous resolution for Drug Regulatory Authority

DAILY TIMES

In order to avoid incidents like the recent PIC drug fiasco in the city, the Punjab Assembly (PA) on Wednesday passed a unanimous resolution asking the federal government to form a national Drug Regulatory Authority.

Allowing the federal government to legislate the authority, the resolution said, “The provincial assembly of the Punjab resolves that the ‘Majlis-e-Shoora’ (parliament) may, by law, regulate matters relating to drugs and medicines in terms of Article 144 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.”

The other three provinces had already passed the same resolution, giving parliament their consent to legislate on the authority in June 2011, however, the Punjab government had been avoiding tabling the resolution, as the federal government had not handed over the administrative powers of Sheikh Zayed Hospital to the province.

Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah tabled the resolution in the House on Wednesday with the opposition’s consent. The resolution was moved in the assembly under Clause 1 of the constitution of Pakistan. Both the opposition parties and PA legislators unanimously supported the resolution.

PA opposition leader Raja Riaz Ahmad said the deaths from contaminated medicines provided by Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC) could have been averted if the provincial government had passed the resolution a year before as was done by other provincial governments.

Raja Riaz said that the resolution had finally been tabled in wake of the recent deaths in Punjab, especially Lahore, due to reaction caused from intake of spurious drugs. He said these life-saving drugs were purchased on cheap rates by the PIC and provided to cardiac patients. He blamed Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif and his party for delay in tabling the resolution. He added that the CM was also responsible for the patients’ deaths, and did not even have the courage to face or take the House into confidence over the issue. Raja Riaz also criticised the role of Rana Sanaullah, saying he (Sanaullah) “had no worth in the party corridors”.

Addressing the House on a point of order, PPP’s parliamentary leader Major (r) Zulfiqar Gondal said the lives of 46,000 patients were at stake from consumption of fake medicines, adding that the CM was directly responsible for the negligence.

In reply to this, Sanaullah informed the House that the federal government had handed over the administrative control of Sheikh Zayed Hospital to the provincial government on Tuesday, immediately after which his government had called the session and passed the resolution for forming a Drug Regulatory Authority.

Raja Riaz of the PPP also raised the question regarding commitment of the speaker in ensuring release of funds for the opposition members. Speaker Rana Iqbal Muhammad Khan said he had not made any commitment. Upon this, Raja Riaz said the record of the last PA proceedings should be checked, which will automatically prove the speaker had made a commitment on the matter.

The speaker, in an attempt to silence him, tried passing the mic to a treasury member, on which Raja Riaz pointed out the quorum, which was incomplete, and the speaker was forced to prorogue the 34th session of the PA for an indefinite period. The session on Wednesday started two hours late from its scheduled time.