It has been 13 days since I wrote my last post in this blog. I was quite busy over the last 1 week, both at work and at home. I started my journey back to my home town Seremban on 12/11/2012 5pm, after completing my clinic. Luckily I could get a locum to cover me till 15/11/2012. Celebrating Deepavalli with my parents and all my siblings is an event that I always look forward every year.
Unfortunately, I developed URTI the very day of Deepavalli which I am yet to recover from. Two days later I developed Conjunctivitis but despite this I still had to work from 16/11/2012 (Friday) as no one else could cover me. That’s life!
The 2nd day of Deepavalli was the day the medical fraternity was shocked with news from Putrajaya. I was flipping through The Malaysian Insider on my phone at around 8pm while I was in my aunty’s house when I came across our DG’s news. An immediate call to my friends in KKM confirmed the story and I posted it in my Facebook which received quite a bit of comments. It is a very sad day indeed for our medical fraternity when the top most doctor in civil service appears in the news for the wrong reasons. Since our new DG took over the office in March 2011, many changes took place in MOH which I have posted many times in this blog. New rules and regulations were introduced which annoyed many people and caused a lot of dissatisfaction among the MOH doctors. New rules such as compulsory rural postings for specialist, removal of 6 months backdated specialist allowance upon gazettement, a waiting period of 2 years for subspeciality training, bonding after subspeciality training, housemanship shift system, KK shift system etc etc did cause a lot of uneasiness among the MOH staffs. I was told that even the nursing division and a lot of staffs in MOH were not happy with him. This is mainly because he makes unilateral and impromptu decisions without much consultations. Everything has to go through him! Having spoken to him when I was a SCHOMOS Chairman of Johor and him being the State Pengarah in 2004, I know exactly how he makes his decisions. In the speech given by our Ex-DG during the MMA AGM 2012 , it was very obvious that our new DG was more politically inclined.
Being such a person will create a lot of enemies who will always look out for your weaknesses (as our Ex-Minister). Everyone in MOH knows his weaknesses. I am sure he was spied upon for a long time till THIS news appeared few days ago. As you know, he has been suspended till SPA decides on the type of disciplinary action that will be taken. Being a top public office bearer, he has to be responsible for what he does.
I am quite sure a new DG will be appointed soon. I am not sure whether all the new rules and regulations that was introduced by this DG will be removed. Only time will tell but it will go down in history as the DG with the shortest term.
Meanwhile, my battle with a virus carries on……………
Pagalavan's Avatar 
hope nEW DG will do smthing to improve healthcare quality in malaysia.also will look into surplus of junior doctors..
meanwhile sir,you too..pls do tc of urself.ur blog been very informative,,,
Fortunately he was exposed but unfortunately there are still many like him in position of power. We need to do act correctly come this GE13 so that the nation can heal and move forward at a faster pace.
hai Dr Paga,
among all dep DG’s, who do u think most suitable to replace him? Becoz, i think we should support person who we believe will benificial to all of us.
Is Dep DG (medical) would be a better choice?
Hisham is OK but I left civil service for almost 6 years.
cant let surgeon to be DG and too young. dont forget u r fr medical side not surgical side.
what is more important is whether he has good attitude and leadership quality and knows what is more important to manage in MOH. Of course, not to listen to politicians.
Aaron, i am wondering about the comment on not favoring a surgeon becoming the next DG. Shouldn’t the person be chosen based on his or her leadership vision and abilities and not based on his or her specialization.
I don’t think he appeared in the news for wrong reason. He is having an affair with another man’s wife. I think this is a good opportunity for JPA to show sincerity in overcoming the top post wrong doing. In Hong Kong and Singapore, all top post personal with wrong doing will have their pension removed. This is to send a STRONG signal to the rest that government officer that they are not immuned to any wrong doing. That is why these two countries are more advance. If JPA just give a warning letter…..I guess I will be very disappointed. Come on, you are 56 year old and having an affair with a 36 year old U41 nurse, she is even higher rank than a ward sister ? matron. It is a good day for the system but not both of them.
Suthan Kaveri…can i ask you….what do u propose the DG do about the “surplus of junior doctors”. Since u mentioed it..you must have some suggestions too.
This indeed good news . I wish the new DG will implement COMMON QUALIFYING EXAM for all graduates . I really hope god will make true my wish via the new DG
Personally I have few encounters with him. He is quite pro to junior doctors. A sad news if he is sacked.
Yes, he was pro junior doctors because there were a lot of VIP children there. Furthermore there were rumours last year that he was going out with a houseman !!
Sent from my iPad
yes Dr. Pagavalan, I agree
HO from PPUM 😉
Will the MMC be involved since there is a conviction in a court of law? But then again as a DG he is the head of MMC.
I think MMC suspension is only automatic for a criminal offense. This is not a felony, but the lesser misdemeanor, and by the Syariah court, so I think the MMC has discretionary power here. He is after all, the head of MMC, and known for making unilateral decisions even within the MMC!
do those qualified overseas specialist need to serve 3 years gov compulsory service before pratising in private sector? I heard have been scrapped off as those regency hosp never serve gov hosp. Correct me if am wrong.
Only if you have worked overseas for more than 10 years! That is the problem as there is no specialist registry yet.
no wonder so many taiwanese doctor in regency hospital? any comment? i thought we have specialist registry (NSR), is it not a must for those work in private hosp?
NSR is Not compulsory yet. Only recently the new medical act passed in Parliament but it will take some time before NSR is made compulsory.
I have written about this before.
I am not sure how much you believe in Karma but some say this is what one gets when one destroys someone else’s ‘future’. How this person transferred Hospital Pengarahs and State Pengarahs according to his whims and fancy without getting the true story (may be just to satisfy the politician), how he disallowed locums at more than one place (yet there were no circular), how he forcefully implemented the shift system without thinking of the consequences on training and quality, how; when public complaint, all he wanted is the staff’s name so as someone can be blamed, how he “must get someone to be punished when things go wrong” without getting the facts right etc, etc. He seems to appear-so call- pro to junior doctors may be because he implemented the shift system for HO but what quality of MOs have we produced from that? Had he so concerned on numbers that quality doesn’t matter to him anymore? How he unilaterally decides on almost anything (in the council) that has to do with the service (again to satisfy politicians (and VIP parents)). In yesterday’s Utusan, Awang Selamat wrote he should be given another chance… should he? It is hoped that the new DG whoever he or she may be, will learn from this and would not make the same mistake.
Give another chance? Hmm why ? Just because he is VVIP ? If a common man or lower rank govt servant involved , will they be excuse? Grow up awang Selamat (utusan) ! Your statement indicate you are not Selamat 😉
I also heard rumours that he is a UMNO member of Sabah!! No wonder Awang selamat is interested.
When you are so high up there, it is very easy to take unfair advantage of your subordinates. In this case, I don’t think a second chance should be given. A deterrent punishment should be meted out instead.
Of course, Awang Selamat would disagree. When has the fella written anything good or useful for the last decade? Sorry, must be my dementia….
An organization is a reflection of its leader…I am a surgeon, and I need a leader that I can look up to,to emulate and to respect. As with the peraturan am kakitangan, any act that may tarnish the image of the government should be dealt with appropriately. This dg never command respect within his subordinates, instead being subjected to numerous ridicules and jokes..it’s time for a new dg, one who will very well learn from his mistakes
I don’t think he got any sympathy from people around him. In fact, I believed people were very much happy if he could leave the post earlier. You could ask people who had worked with him before, how hell it was…
as for me, I wish him a happy life after this….sayonaraa from your post…
Well ,the staffs might hate him but the politician love him.anything that make the politicians happy will make that sob happy too
DG was demoted one grade. Is he our shortest serving DG?
Demoted 1 grade but nothing mentioned about his DG post. Likely he will have to step down.
He is DG no more. Now he will face ridicule from his new boss & subordinates.
i have a feeling he will take early retirement
http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2012/12/3/nation/20121203144118&sec=nation
Someone twitted “He who like to demote people now demoted”
[…] news that appeared on the 2nd day of Deepavalli (14/12/2012). I have written about it over here. Being the highest office bearer for a doctor, he was suspended and demoted by one […]