SAITM backs solution proposed by Govt.

The South Asian Institute of Technology and Medicine Ltd. (SAITM) in a statement this week said that it supports the solution put forward by the Government.  

Following is the full statement by SAITM. 

We wish to inform the Sri Lankan public that the management and the majority of the parents are fully supportive of a solution put forward by the Government of Sri Lanka. The five-member Presidential Committee report headed by Dr. Harsha de Silva, has clearly stated that the abolishment of the institution is not the solution. The committee is of the view that the solution proposed to resolve the current issues must be in accordance with the Government’s policy to enable non-state higher education, including medical education.

The five-member Presidential Committee has already addressed the Dean’s proposals, which are proposals which cannot be implemented in the current legal framework. Furthermore, SAITM has already expressed its views on the Presidential Committee report, where SAITM will extend its fullest support to the Government’s commitment to maintain the quality and standards of medical education. This includes broad-basing ownership and temporarily suspending the students’ admission for the MBBS program.

SAITM also welcomes the initiative to legally establish standards, which should be applicable to both state and non-state faculties sans discrimination. Accreditation and quality assurance will ensure that standards in medical education are maintained.

The SAITM management wishes to reiterate that the self-acclaimed SAITM Parents Association headed by Gamunu Wijeratne has no relation nor is it the official association of parents for SAITM. It is an association where Mr. Wijeratne voices his personal opinion and not the view of the majority of parents. Therefore, SAITM and its management will not be held responsible for the statements given through this association.

SAITM has and always will abide by the laws of the country and extend its fullest cooperation to the Government of Sri Lanka to expedite a just and expeditious solution for its MBBS graduates and undergraduates.