Too Late To Apologize

When everyone’s eyes is on the new elected cabinet ministers, the Health Ministry has apologized to the family of A. Seva, a deceased who died from ‘septimic shock’ as a result of the negligence of the hospital employees in Pahang in mid-April. Our Health Minister, who is also the Bentong MP has stressed and insisted that proper patient care by their staff and caring attitudes when treating patients.

Soon after the accident in Pahang, another unfortunate incident happened in Kajang Hospital whereby a newborn baby died shortly being delivered through a vacuum procedure. As a result of the procedure, the baby had fractures to his shoulders and skull. Under such circumstance, the Health Ministry had told the press that disciplinary action will be taken against person concerned.

In the first incident, Seva’s mum has lodged a police report claiming that her son’s death was due to the negligence of the hospital. As a result, ex-gratia payment is assured by the government. However, in the second incident, the government has chosen a defensive mode unlike the apologetic mode in the first incident. It may be inferred that the latter victim’s family has opted to file a suit for RM2mil against the government for medical negligence which may lead to the defensive reaction by the government; or giving the benefit of doubt, the investigation of the cause of the death of the newborn baby is still on going.

The law on medical negligence has started its new era after our Apex Court has delivered its Judgment in Foo Fio Na v. Dr. Soo Foo Mun & Anor in which the Federal Chief Judge held that ‘Bearing in mind of authorities, there is a need for members of the medical profession to stand up to the wrong doings, if any, as is the case of professionals in other professions. In so doing, people involved in the medical negligence cases would be able to obtain better professional advice and that the court would be appraised with evidence that would assist them in deliberations.’ Thoughts have been given to a phrase by Lord Woolfe, ‘Doctor knows best’ and qualified with these words ‘if he acts reasonably and logically and gets his facts right’.

It is urged that the professions whom the people have put their trust over their lives to be serious in their practice by ‘acting reasonably, logically and getting the facts right’ when it is not too late to apologize.

Apology may not necessary constitute as admission; Defensive may not be fled from liability; But surely misfortune is a failure to take reasonable step to remedy it.
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1 [2007] 1 CLJ 229

Fading Hopes

While Malaysian officials are announcing the safe return of 26 Malaysians from Maoxin in Sichuan, who were stranded in the earthquake-affected area for five days, the Chinese rescue teams have faded their hopes in searching for miraculous for quake survivors across Sichuan Province. The latest death roll is reported at 32,476 including 31,978 in Sichuan Province and 220,109 injured and 100,000 others were still buried and presumed death.

About 1800 years ago, large percentage of 16 Million of population was wiped out during one of the bloodiest in Chinese History- Three Kingdoms (AD220-280) namely Cao Wei, Dong Wu and Shu Han.
Thousand were dead over the same piece of land 1800 years ago and this time it is the natural disaster devastated the area. One fact remains unchanged, thousand had died.

Without the aid of present scientific deadly weapons and technology, these Three Kingdoms or Three Empires were never able to consolidate the power of the imperial throne against the mighty magnates and military leaders. War was the only solution to unify China. All they could rely on were the Art of Warfare, wisdom and intelligence, sense of strategy.

The Kingdom of Shu Han (AD221-263) was established by Liu Bei (present-day Sichuan) assisted by his advisor, the most popular and well-known name in every family of China, Zhuge Liang who has always been regarded as the embodiment of intelligence and wisdom. Zhege Liang was born in a turbulent times where there was unbridled fighting among powerful military commanders and of widespread political corruption. Faced with the social reality of ceaseless fighting, he decided to have nothing to do with contemporary politics and made good use of his time, read intensively the works of various ancient philosophers and studied descriptions of historical events and figures and analyzed social reality, probing the causes that had led to the decline of Eastern Han Dynasty before he accepted the post as an advisor for Liu Bei. It was only through the studying and labouring in the fields, Zhuge Liang began to understand the sufferings of the people and gained knowledge of the situation of the world.

At Zhege Liang’s advice, the fifty thousand of allied troops of Liu Bei and Sun Quan defeatd Cao Cao’s mighty army of over a thousand men at the Red Wall (Chibi).

Northern China was dominated by Cao Cao, who had established The Kingdom of Wei (AD22-265). Cao Cao was extraordinary talented in administration, diplomacy and military affairs. In the famous battle of Guandu, Cao Cao, with combined courage and strategy, defeated Yuan Shao’s army of 200,000 which was numerically superior and more powerful. He bought the entire middle and lower Huanghe River Valley under his control.

In those days, laws were never applied to a sovereign. However there was once when Cao Cao was riding at the head of his troops along a narrow path in some wheat fields, after he had commanded that no one should be allowed to trample on the wheat and that anyone who disobeyed should be beheaded, his own horse rushed into the wheat fields. He said to his men: “How can I expect my troops to follow me if I myself violate the military laws I made. But I am the Commander in Chief. Without me the army would leaderless. So it behooves me to mete out my own punishment.” After he said these words, he drew his sword and cut off his head-dress in place of his head.

Throughout the political history of Malaysia, do we have a Zhuge Liang who understands the sufferings of the people and able to penetrate views on our present political situation? Do we have a Cao Cao, a talented strategist and outstanding statesman who can uphold the notion of ‘no one is above the law’?