HOSPITAL DIRECTOR INVESTIGATED AMIDST ALLEGATIONS OF INTIMIDATION

The Ministry of Health has launched an investigation into the alleged authoritarian conduct of the director of the Ratnapura Hospital.

A five-member team conducted a special three-day inquiry at the hospital while the director was still carrying out his duties.

According to hospital sources, many individuals who were scheduled to give evidence were unable to do so.

It is alleged that the director’s associates informed him about who was providing statements to the investigative team.

The sources also claim that some female employees who had been threatened by the director were reluctant to come forward because he was still on the hospital premises.

They had expressed a willingness to provide evidence if the director was suspended during the investigation.

In a related incident, the Government Medical Officers' Association had displayed a banner on the hospital premises to condemn the director's alleged thuggish behaviour.

Hospital sources claim that the director ordered the hospital's head of security to remove the banner, threatening to dismiss him if he failed to comply.

Additionally, posters reading "Let's Protect the Hospital Director" have been displayed outside the hospital.

Hospital sources say two men on a motorcycle put up the posters before fleeing the scene.

When asked for comment, the director, Dr Imesh Prathapasinghe, stated he was unaware of the situation and advised reporters to seek information from those who provided the tip-off.