By Dr Upul Wijayawardhana
Quite a number of my distinguished colleagues have written about the Sri Lanka Medical Council (SLMC) or held press conferences lately, but all of them addressed only one issue; the removal, by the Minister of Health, of the president and four members of the council appointed by her predecessor. Whilst my colleagues are questioning the legality of this action, the Minister contends that she has the authority to do so and justifies her action on the basis of the findings of the five-member committee she appointed. As we, doctors, as well as politicians, being equally unaware of the finer points of law, perhaps, it is best left for the judiciary to decide on the legality or otherwise of this decision. However, if the courts decide that the Minister of Health acted illegally, surely, she should resign, not only because of this but also because of her erratic behaviour during the grave health emergency we are going through. We do not seem to be very lucky with our Ministers of Health; one with the infamy of a bogus ‘crocodile’ press conference being replaced by another who pollutes rivers with pots of a concoction devised by a faith healer and then, adding insult to injury, by promoting an untested remedy invented by a Kali Amma inspired