KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 7 – The raid conducted last week on a gynaecologist’s office in Bukit Damansara was not racially motivated, Deputy Health Minister Dr Lee Boon Chye clarified.
The raid, he said, was conducted in the interest of the public and to protect the health of the people.
“Do not think that everything is related to a racial issue because anyone can get sick,” he told reporters after opening the Special Needs Across Life Span seminar at Fatimah Hospital here today, according to Free Malaysia Today.
“This clinic has two issues — first it is not registered and second, there are reports that it is selling items not registered with the ministry.
“The raid was made in the interest of the public’s health. To have a different view is normal. If the party wants to take legal action against the ministry, it is their right to do so,” he stated.
A clinic cannot operate if it’s not licensed or registered under the Private Healthcare Facilities and Services Act 1998.
The gynaecologist, Dr Hamid Arshat, took to Facebook last week to complain about a raid by the Health Ministry, claiming that the officers came with neither prior notice nor clear motives, and he was taken aback by the harsh manner of the search. People subsequently criticised the raid in support of Dr Hamid.
Following the incident, Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya Federal Territories Health Department director Dr Param Jeeth Singh released a statement saying that the inspection was carried out following a tip-off that the office had health care products not registered with the ministry.
