The landscaping project to be implemented at the Colombo University Medical Faculty at a cost of Rs. 34. 5 million, is involved in a financial fraud, media spokesman for the Medical Students’ Parents’ Union Wasantha Alwis said.
Addressing the media in Colombo yesterday, he said it is surprising that the management of the Medical Faculty is ready to spend this amount of money for a landscaping project while neglecting the urgent maintenance of the medical students’ toilets, hostels and canteen. The Faculty was hit by the dengue virus recently due to mosquito breeding sites located in it, he said.
He said funds had been received by the Colombo Medical Faculty from a private donor. Also, the Faculty was faced with many more shortcomings which required urgent attention.
An investigation is now going on at the Colombo Medical Faculty in connection with recruiting foreign students `in an unusual manner’, he added.
Meanwhile, all vacancies for MBBS doctors in State hospitals will be filled in two years’ time while around 7,000 medical students are now studying in State medical faculties. According to a Health Ministry notice only 1,700 vacancies existed in September 2019 in State hospitals for MBBS doctors. Even MBBS doctors will be unemployed in Sri Lanka soon. Under this situation, increasing the number of foreign medical graduates is very problematic, Alwis said.