Pharmacists demand election date for association council

AMMAN — Pharmacists want authorities to set a date as soon as possible to elect the council of their association, which has been dissolved for a year. 

In recent days, pharmacists have held sit-ins outside the headquarters of the Professionals Associations Complex in Shmeisani, calling on the Health Ministry to set a date to elect the Jordan Pharmacists Association (JPhA) council members. 

The elections had been scheduled for May 20, but outgoing health minister Ali Hiasat suspended the vote due to a dispute among the leading members of the syndicate, a ministry official told The Jordan Times on Tuesday. 

The members disagreed over whether the upcoming council should be considered a new one or as complementary to the previous one, which was dissolved after several members resigned over internal differences, said the official, who requested anonymity. 

The Law Interpretation Bureau is studying the issue, and an election date will be set once it reaches a decision, he added.

Former JPhA president Mohammad Ababneh criticised the Health Ministry for being slow to resolve the issue, noting that the association has been without a council to take decisions on issues of "extreme" importance. 

"It is unacceptable that there has been no council for a year," he said, calling on the ministry to set an election date as soon as possible. 

Ahmad Issa, who was the president of the dissolved council, also called for speeding up the election, criticising the ministry for cancelling polls just a week before the scheduled date.

The previous council was dissolved in May 2015, he noted, adding that the ministry should have called for a general assembly meeting immediately and held elections within a month. 

"It is not right that pharmacists remain without a council for over a year. There are issues related to investments and the pension fund that should not remain on hold for such a long period," Issa said. 

Pharmacists will continue to hold sit-ins until an election date is determined, he added. 

Pharmacists will have to elect 10 members and a president to form the JPhA council. According to the law, if five members or more resign then the council must be dissolved.