“ORDERED TO REPORT”

Dominion, Volume 15, Issue 135, 3 March 1922, Page 4

“ORDERED TO REPORT”

DR. McKIBBIN TO BE DEALT WITH.

BY TELEGRAPH—PRESS ASSOCIATION. Auckland, March 2. Questioned regarding Dr. McKibbin’s statement in reference to the Health Department, the Hon. C. J. Parr said he did not care to discuss the matter. Dr. McKibbin had been ordered to report to headquarters, where the head' of the Department and the Public Service Commissioner Would deal with the matter. Dr. McKibbin had seen fit; to make a personal attack upon the Minister and his superior officers, and if this sort of thing were tolerated without reproof, there would soon be chaos in the Civil Service.

[Dr. DfcKibbin, Auckland district health officer, made a statement on Tuesday in reply to Dlr. Parr’s announcement that he was investigating a charge of slackness in plague precautions at one port in the Dominion. Dr. DfcKibbin, after saying that this referred to Auckland, expressed strong indignation at the Minister’s innuendo and the manner in which he alleged Dlr. Parr had ridden roughshod oyer the administrative staff in ventilating charges he had not confirmed from his Department. “Div feeling in the matter.” he said, “is that the Minister might refer such complaints to the medical officer concerned before he discredits every officer in the Dominion unnecessarily bv utterances in the public Press'. 1 feel sorry for the Dimister. Hie political situation is acute, and he must consider it, but I depiecate political capital being made of these matters to the discomfiture of the Dfinister’s own officers. The work of a medical officer of health in Zealand is difficult enough. Of late he is only a junior rat-catcher. . . • At the present tho Department is in a state of chaos engendered by political’ action and scare-mongering, and even if the best county medical, officer of health in England held office in New Zealand, particularly in Auckland, he could not satisfy the demands made on him.”]