I read with concern a small article in the newspaper that our government had bought over the Sabah Medical Centre (SMC) for RM 300 million.

The reason given was to reduce congestion at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital.

This sounds totally illogical: Buy over a private hospital to reduce congestion at a government o­ne? Does this mean that SMC will start treating the public at government hospital rates?

This sounds very much like another bailout.

As far as I know SMC has been losing money since it was established. In contrast, Subang Jaya Medical Centre, the premier private medical centre in Malaysia, is o­n sale for less than RM300 million.