• KDU not within our purview: UGC

The Ministry of Defence has sought a response from the Vice Chancellor (VC) of the General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University (KDU) Major General (Rtd.) Milinda Peiris regarding the reported corruption allegations of the KDU and the University Hospital attached to the University, The Daily Morning learns.

When contacted by The Daily Morning about the actions taken by the Defence Ministry regarding the corruption allegations levelled against the KDU, Director of Media at the Defence Ministry Colonel Nalin Herath told The Sunday Morning that the Ministry of Defence will take further actions after receiving the VC’s response to the said allegations.

“The Ministry had asked the VC of KDU to send a letter to the Ministry responding to the corruption allegations levelled against the University, particularly against him. The Ministry is waiting for his letter to take further actions in this regard. However we have not yet received such a letter from the VC and we hope to issue an explanation on these reported corruption allegations after looking into the issue very carefully,” Col. Herath said.

When contacted about the allegations, The Chairman of the University of Grant University (UGC) Prof.Sampath Amaratunga yesterday (14) said that the UGC cannot take any action regarding the reported corruption allegations of the Sir John Kotelawela Defence University (KDU) and the KDU Hospital as it is not within the purview of the UGC.

Speaking to The Daily Morning yesterday, Prof. Amaratunaga said that the KDU is administered by a Board of Management appointed by the President of Sri Lanka which is under the control of the Ministry of Defence.

Amongst the reported allegations levelled against the VC and the KDU are how costly medical equipment is purchased although some are underutilised, spending millions of Australian Dollars to get an Accreditation to the University Hospital, the credibility of certain members  appointed to the tender boards and technical evaluation committees (TEC) to procure medical equipment worth over millions of rupees, making spot purchases in the guise of emergency procurement, the procurement process initiated to install Hyperbaric Oxygen Chamber (HBOT) worth over Rs. 200 million, construction of a 2,000 seating capacity auditorium at the KDU, severe shortage of essential medicines, consumables etc. for clinical services and the proposed plan for a dental faculty, promoting consultant doctors who have joined the KDU after retirement as fully fledged professors violating the UGC criteria and reserving permanent academic cadre vacancies for retired consultants without filling the positions with qualified applicants. 

The KDU is administered by a Board of Management chaired by the Secretary to the Ministry of Defence General (Rtd.)Kamal Gunaratne.