LAHORE: The Punjab government has expedited the process for regular appointment of vice chancellors at five medical universities in the province.

There were reports that administrative, financial and academic matters at six medical universities of Punjab had almost come to a halt in the absence of regular VCs.

On Friday, the health department recommended names of six senior medical teachers in two separate panels to the chief minister to fill the VCs` slots of newly established Faisalabad and Nishtar medical universities.

The recommendations for King Edward Medical University (KEMU) and Fatima Jinnah Medical University (FJMU), Lahore had already been sent to the CM. For the University of Health Sciences (UHS), thedepartment had cancelled the nominations of five candidates previously sent to the chief minister when he directed it to readvertise the position.

The panel of candidates for KEMU, included former acting vice chancellor of the university Prof Dr Asad Aslam Khan, Shaikh Zayed Hospital Chairman Prof Farid Ahmad Khan and Prof Mohammad Ayub. For FJMU, the candidates included Prof Dr Khalid Masood Gondal, Prof Dr Amir Zaman Khan and acting VC of KEMU Prof Dr Qazi Saeed.

These two panels had been called for an interview with the CM on Thursday. But they were informed at the eleventh hour that the interview had been postponed due to `unavoidable reasons` and will likely be conducted on Monday.

An official privy to the development said that the hiring process for only Rawalpindi Medical College was in itsfinal stage. The chief minister had interviewed three senior doctors last Saturday in the presence of search committee members. The candidates were Maj Gen Prof Abdul Khalig Naveed, dean of Riphah International University, Islamabad; Prof Dr Mohammad Omar, the acting VC of the same varsity; and Prof Dr Mohammad Idrees.

The of ficial said that since the CM`s focus was seeking assurance from candidates that they would abandon private practice, Prof Omar could be ignored for being the owner of a large private hospital situated right opposite to Rawalpindi Medical University.

However, he said, Prof Omar was said to have the most potential due to his strong connections in the Punjab government.

For the Faisalabad Medical University, the search committee had shortlisted Prof Maj Gen Abdul Khalig Naveed, Prof SardarAlfareed Zafar and Prof Dr Abid Rasheed.

Prof Zafar is currently serving as the university`s acting vice chancellor, the official said.

The search committee also sent a panel of three senior medics for Nishtar Medical University Multan, including Prof Maj Gen Abdul Khalig Naveed, Sahiwal Medical College Principal Prof Zafar H Tanvir and Nishtar`s professor of surgery Dr Haider Zaman. They were shortlisted and recommended to the CM on Friday for consideration against the VC`s seat.

However, Nishtar`s acting vice chancellor, Prof Dr Mustafa Kamal Pasha, had not been considered for the top slot. He had been the likely candidate for the position due to his strong connections in the Punjab government. However, he was not considered in the panel of three candidates, which surprised many in the medical community.