Concerns over a possible conflict of interest have surfaced in Sindh regarding the Medical and Dental College Admission Test (MDCAT) for admissions to MBBS and BDS programmes after it emerged that the daughter of the head of the testing institution would also appear in the examination. However, the Sindh health minister has insisted that the test will continue to be conducted by the IBA Sukkur.
Speaking to Jang/The News, IBA Sukkur Vice Chancellor Dr Asif Sheikh said that since his daughter would be appearing in this year’s MDCAT examination, he had months ago suggested to the Sindh government that the test be assigned to another institution in order to avoid any perception of conflict of interest.
Dr Sheikh said that in this regard he had also written a letter to the health secretary on April 14 and later informed Sindh Health Minister Dr Azra Fazal Pechuho during a meeting that as his daughter was participating in the examination, it would be more appropriate for another university or institution to conduct the test.
He said his daughter was an outstanding student who had studied at Mama Parsi Girls School and Aga Khan Higher Secondary School and had secured 93 per cent marks in intermediate examinations under the Aga Khan Board.
According to Dr Sheikh, vice chancellors of various universities in Sindh or their representatives attended Tuesday’s meeting. However, he said, the health minister did not agree with the proposal and insisted that IBA Sukkur would continue to conduct the MDCAT examination. He added that the head of IBA Sukkur would not be involved in paper-setting, scrutiny of questions or any sensitive stages of the examination process so that no questions could be raised regarding transparency. Dr Sheikh said he had also proposed during the meeting that the responsibility for conducting MDCAT be withdrawn from him for one year and assigned to another institution. He further stated that it was decided during the meeting that Jinnah Sindh Medical University would oversee the MBBS and BDS admissions process for the current academic year.
