Two graduates from Monash University Malaysia are currently unable to enrol for their housemanship due to their new medical degrees, which is not yet gazetted under the Medical Act 1971.
The duo then hauled the renowned Australian-based private university to the court for allegedly offering them to switch to the new medical programme halfway through their course.
When contacted today, lawyer Kiranjeet Kaur Sidhu said her clients, Dr Amardas Singh and Dr Liew Mee Yew, both 25, filed the writ of summons at the Shah Alam High Court on Feb 24.
She claimed that during the third year of their initial honours degree programme of Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) in April 2018, representatives of Monash had offered the duo and their whole class to switch to the new medical degree programme, Bachelor of Medical Science and Doctor of Medicine (BMed/Sci MD).
She alleged that the two plaintiffs were informed that the new medical degree is of a higher level and of the same status as a masters’ degree.
According to the suit's cause papers, upon graduating from the university in November last year, the duo had found out that the new degree programme was not gazetted under the act.
“On Nov 16 last year, they completed their course and received academic transcripts of the new degree programme.
"Then eight days later, they were shocked to discover that the new degree was not listed under MMC’s application system, and not yet gazetted under the Second Schedule of the Medical Act 1971,” she claimed.
She contended that as a result, the duo was unable to proceed with their housemanship with the government, which is a requirement before they could practice medicine in Malaysia.
“My clients were from a class of over 100 students (for the new medical degree in Monash University Malaysia). Most graduates were affected as they wished to practice medicine in Malaysia.
“They are currently unable to practice medicine as the MD degree is currently not gazetted by MMC, so my clients seek the court’s justice for this delay,” Kiranjeet claimed.
The lawyer emphasised that the lawsuit involves an issue of public interest as parents now need to check whether a proposed medical degree has been gazetted before thinking of enrolling their children in these programmes.
“In future, if any university offers to convert (a student’s initial medical degree programme to a new proposed medical degree programme), then parents need to find out if the new medical degree programme has been gazetted for housemanship purposes.
“Parents spend a lot of money on the dream of ensuring their children get to further education for a better future,” Kiranjeet said.
The cause papers also showed the two plaintiffs seeking damages for loss incurred from the alleged negligence, breach of contract and/or misrepresentation.
They seek a declaration for their records at Monash University to not be jeopardised due to them initiating the present civil action, costs, and any other relief deemed fit by the court.
When Malaysiakini attempted to reach out to Monash University Malaysia to obtain their response to the legal action, Edelman Public Relations Worldwide Sdn Bhd responded on behalf of the university.
The public relations firm said Monash's new medical degree programme is accredited in both Malaysia and Australia.
"We are aware of the concerns raised by the graduate students about the registration for housemanship and we have had detailed communications with all affected students.
"We have discussed the matter with the relevant authorities with a view to having the situation resolved as quickly as possible.
"Some of the affected students have already been able to register for their housemanship," the firm said.
The suit is set for case management before the Shah Alam High Court Registry on March 25. - Mkini
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