GMOA requests President to bring Health Ministry under his purview

The Government Medical Officers Association (GMOA) has requested President Maithripala Sirisena to bring the Health Ministry under his purview owing to the numerous allegations that have been levelled against Health Minister Rajitha Senaratne.

Addressing a letter to the President, the GMOA claimed that the biased nature adopted by the Health Minster towards milk powder companies and the functioning of former Health Secretary Dr. Athula Kanadaliyanage as the Chairman of the Sri Jaywardenapura hospital despite being the country head for a foreign milk powder company were some of the allegations levelled against the Minister.

“Minister Senaratne has been making biased remarks towards milk powder companies in Parliament in order to create a favourable environment for them,” the GMOA alleged.

Further the GMOA said that the parliamentary Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) has also made revelations pertaining to the irregularities that had taken place while purchasing cancer drugs.

The letter which was signed by the President and the Secretary of the GMOA also alleged that patients’ lives have been exposed to risk due to the pro-SAITM stance adopted by the Health Ministry.

In addition, the GMOA claimed that Rs 200 million was being used by the Neville Fernando Teaching Hospital on a monthly basis without following due process.

The GMOA then said that the Health Ministry was neglecting the technical recommendations put forward by the GMOA – an association which has been set up to protect the rights of patients, in a bid to make such bodies a failure.

The letter further alleged that SAITM graduates who have not registered themselves at the GMOA are deprived of an opportunity to continue their medical studies despite the Sir Kothalwala Defence University existing as an alternative.

“The Health Ministry is providing law internships for these students in a bid to divert their field of study” the letter claimed.

On the same note, the letter added that the Ministry had provided medical internship opportunities for those who had even failed their G.C.E. Advanced Level examinations.

The Association charged that there were several irregularities in the transfers and appointments of doctors in the health service.

Accordingly, the GMOA requested the President to bring the Health Ministry under his purview  by citing that Minister Senaratne was “functioning according to his own agenda while disregarding the rights of the patients”.