The Hon. (Dr.) Nalinda Jayatissa

¶ 01 Hon. Member, I have previously raised the PACS issue in this House. In 2017 a project was implemented for five hospitals. There are serious questions about how it was initiated and driven, and about the USD 3 million payments. Audits are ongoing and the Bribery Commission is acting. We do need a functioning PACS. The main problem surfaced at the National Hospital. CT and MRI scans are being done, including at Colombo South and Colombo North Teaching Hospitals, even without PACS, by directly handling image output. The current procurement and contractual structure prevents approving further payments to the vendor for the next tranche. This was a USD 33 million project; had it begun with proper transparency, it would have been easier for the country. We are discussing the next installment with the company. Several committees have been appointed, but responsibility is difficult to fix because of how the project was executed. That is the core issue, Hon. Speaker.