There is no denying that the role that the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) has played in the last couple of decades has managed to bring about several different medical and dental colleges within Pakistan, but neither their functioning nor their ability to abide by regulatory statutes was up to the mark. This is precisely why the government of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaaf (PTI), on the idea of President Arif Alvi, dismissed the PMDC on a presidential ordinance to establish Pakistan Medical Council (PMC). While the idea of re-establishing a body with the intent of keeping an eye on the medical practices in the country shows concern for the administration of the medical and dental colleges, it still does not take away the fact that an old system was being replaced without any efficient backup to sustain the work that was already being done.

The decision of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) to dismiss the presidential ordinance and reinstate the PMDC works in the favour of the people affected by the previous decision. Over 220 employees lost their jobs in the process and the government was not able to facilitate them anywhere this. This pushed back a lot of the work that was already being executed by the PMDC, which the PMC could not execute due to a lack of understanding of the work along with delays in the functions that the PMDC was performing. Medical and dental professionals could not gain a license since the office of PMC has been mostly found shut. The government needs to realise that teams upon teams cannot be replaced in each and every segment of the government. It is important to understand the functions it is performing and work out a layout that will improve the existing set up instead of introducing a completely new one. These are all tactics that the previous governments have juggled with and it resulted in their vision being more and more parochial, ending in policies and programmes expanding over the course of just five years and not beyond.

At the same time, there is also a legal requirement to ratify the presidential ordinance within the parliament. While it has the same standing as an act of parliament, it must be approved by the parliament or it can be repealed within 120 days. The parliament needs to be a hub of discussion because despite differences in vision and ideology, many opposition leaders have been closely involved in running a government and it is important to engage them in a debate that allows the government to see past their own inhibitions and work for the greater good of the state.