"The purchase of the hospital is like a dream that has fallen apart," she said yesterday.

"I started the process with the governor on January 13, and the provincial committee for this project and the [PAO] committee negotiated the price with the Thai Asset Management Corp [TAMC]."

TAMC agreed to sell the property at a discounted price of Bt315 million, down from Bt492 million, but only until the end of April.

Just before that deadline, Udomsak appointed a special committee to reconsider the project, prompting Anchalee to negotiate for the deadline to be pushed back a month. It is now well past the extended deadline, but the governor still refuses to budge.

The project needs the governor's approval of a request for a Bt215-million loan from Krung Thai Bank and the Government Savings Bank.

However, Udomsak is withholding his approval until he is satisfied that the new hospital will be run effectively and in line with Public Health Ministry objectives.

"So now the project is just like a dream that cannot come true, and I can't ask the TAMC to hold down the price any longer because it is now out of our control. We have to wait until the next governor," Anchalee said.

She said Udomsak should keep in mind that he was the one who asked Thaksin Shinawatra for Bt800 million to buy the Phya Thai building.

"Why is he thinking about the management of the hospital and the problems that might follow, and what will be done with the hospital if it is not a success?" she said.

"He does not have the answers for us, and we're the ones who will be held responsible for it. In the meantime, we can save money and buy it for Bt315 million, but still he does not give his approval.

"We will outsource the management to Ramathibodi and Baan Paew Hospitals in Bangkok, which can provide recently graduated doctors and nurses. He is worried about something that has not come about yet, but he does not seem to be worried about the patients who have to wait for treatment or pay more for treatment at private clinics."

But the governor is standing his ground. "If [the PAO] wanted to buy the hospital so it would become a state hospital, then I would have no problem with approving the loan requests," Udomsak said.

"What they should consider carefully is what the hospital will be used for and how it will be managed. Also, are there enough doctors and nurses for the new hospital? And if not, what will they do?

"Doctors and nurses prefer to work for private hospitals because they offer better pay than state hospitals.

"They should also ensure nothing contradicts the Health Ministry's objectives, which are different [from those of the private sector].

"I have suggested that [the PAO] discuss this further with the Public Health Minister Pinit Jarusombat, Deputy Interior Minister Somchai Soontornwat and Department of Local Administration director-general Saroj Katchamart, but we have not had a good chance to talk and come to a conclusion.

"I will not approve the request for the loans unless these three people also agree."

Phuket Gazette

PHUKET