Crown prince claims Putrajaya has been side-lining Johor.
Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar today offered to pay for damages to the Sultanah Aminah Hospital in Johor Baru caused by a fire which broke out in the Women’s Ward 1 which is located not far from the Mahmoodiah Health Clinic.
The Johor Sultan said this was because he wants repair works to commence quickly, with the welfare of patients in mind.
“I will get my contractors to start work immediately in collaboration with the Public Works Department, Fire and Rescue Department and Health Department. The cost of repairs will be borne by my foundation,” His Majesty said through the Royal Press Office, referring to the Sultan Ibrahim of Johor Foundation.
“This will reduce the need for red tape and expedite the repairs so that the building can resume operations for the benefit of patients.”
The Sultan Ibrahim of Johor Foundation is an organisation involved in various charity programmes and initiatives.
Head of Johor Fire and Rescue, Yahaya Madis said results of a forensic investigation to determine the cause of the fire will be made known in a day or two.
He said 60 personnel from its headquarters, and stations in Tebrau, Johor Jaya and Larkin fought the fire.
“We arrived at the scene in five minutes and the fire was extinguished completely at 3.29 pm,” he said.
Yahaya said the fire had involved an oxygen panel, a call bell and a switch in the ward’s bed number five.
“A total of 24 patients in the ward were successfully evacuated to safety by staff on duty,” he said.
The staff had tried to put out the fire by using a dry powder fire extinguisher, however, the attempt was futile, and the fire started to spread to the ceiling.
The fire was put under control and totally extinguished as soon as the firemen arrived, and the operation ended at 5.21 pm.
In the wake of the fire, Putrajaya has been accused of side-lining Johor despite requests for improvements which were made four years ago.
“Until when are Johor and the people of Johor going to be left out?” said the Tunku Mahkota (crown prince) of Johor, Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim, in an online posting.
He said he and his parents, the Sultan of Johor and the Raja Permaisuri, had all spoken about the need to build a new hospital and upgrade existing ones four years ago.
“We not only see it from the need of hospitals, but we can also see Johor being left out by looking at the condition of the highways.
“Consider the fact that Johor is advanced and contributes a lot to the national economy and federal government, but there are only two lanes on the highway compared to Malacca and Negeri Sembilan, which don’t contribute as much,” Tunku Ismail said.
His posting came hours after a fire broke out at the women’s ward of Hospital Sultanah Aminah (HSA), the second in less than four years. There were no deaths or injuries.
However, six people died when fire broke out on the second floor of the hospital in October 2016.
Tunku Ismail had visited the hospital last year and voiced disappointment that the wards affected by the 2016 fire had not been improved.
Health director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said a committee has been set up to carry out an investigation on the fire.
The committee is also entrusted to ensure that there will be no disruption of the health services provided by HSA, he said.
“Despite facing all sorts of challenges, the health workers on the ground will continue to provide the best services for the people,” Noor Hisham said in a statement.
He said he and his colleague, Dr Chen Chaw Min, were given a briefing by HSA director Dr Mohtar Pungut @Ahmad during their visit to the hospital yesterday.