Unregistered clinic: Doctor’s wife files application to reduce fine

NST: KUALA LUMPUR: The wife of a doctor who is in jail after failing to settle a RM120,000 fine has filed a revision to reduce the amount.
Norliza Hassan, 44, has also applied for her husband to be released on a good behaviour bond.
Her husband, Dr Basmullah Yusoff, was found guilty of operating his clinic, Pusat Perubatan Al Hilal Sdn Bhd in Kampung Pandan, which was not registered.
He became the first doctor in the country to be convicted under the Private Healthcare Facilities and Services Act 1998 Act for operating an unregistered clinic.
He was fined RM120,000 or three months’ jail. He could not raise the amount and has been serving his sentence at the Kajang Prison since Jan 19.
Norliza, a canteen worker, made the application through her counsel Karpal Singh at the High Court registry yesterday.
She named the public prosecutor as the respondent.
Karpal said he had filed a notice of urgency for the application to be heard tomorrow.
In her supporting affidavit, Norliza claimed her husband was unrepresented and was not informed of the maximum fine.
She said the Sessions Court should have informed him of the hefty fine so that he could seek legal aid.
Norliza also claimed that her husband, in a written mitigation, had stated he was unable to raise the RM120,000 fine or pay it in instalments.
Norliza, who was present during the filing, said an enforcement officer from the Health Ministry had posed as a patient before nabbing her husband.
“My husband was treated like a criminal, seeing the number of enforcement officers who raided the clinic,” she said, adding that Dr Basmullah had been operating the clinic for 19 years.
Norliza claimed that her husband did not know the requirement of the Health Ministry to have the clinic registered.
Former Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek had appealed to doctors not to blame him for Dr Basmullah’s jail sentence.
He had said the legislation was to weed out bogus doctors who posed a threat to public health and safety.
“I wanted to ensure that genuine doctors were registered. My paramount concern was patients’ safety.
“We are talking about people’s health and lives,” he had said.
He claimed the ministry had given ample time for doctors to register their clinics.
Under the Act, Dr Basmullah was liable to a maximum fine of RM500,000.