KUALA LUMPUR: The independent inquiry report into the 2016 fire at Sultanah Aminah Hospital in Johor Baru should be made public, as families of the six victims continue to seek answers a decade after the tragedy.
Galen Centre for Health and Social Policy chief executive Azrul Mohd Khalib said the report, completed in 2018 and declassified on Oct 15, 2019, had yet to be made public despite previous government commitments.
He said Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad had received the findings during his first tenure in the portfolio and had committed to releasing the report.
Azrul questioned why the commitment had yet to be fulfilled, saying previous justifications for withholding the report, particularly pending litigation, no longer applied after the remaining civil suits involving victims' families were settled in early 2025.
"Ten years is far too long for families to wait for answers. The report of the independent inquiry commissioned by the government was completed in 2018 and declassified in October 2019. The findings remain hidden from the Malaysian public," he said in a statement.
The independent committee, chaired by former Court of Appeal judge Mohd Hishamudin Yunus, submitted its findings in June 2018.
The 225-page report reportedly highlighted serious deficiencies in fire safety preparedness, staff training, emergency evacuation procedures, equipment and institutional oversight.
Azrul said the findings raised important questions about the safety of patients and healthcare workers across the public healthcare system, and should have informed improvements in hospital fire safety and emergency preparedness.
"Fire drills, emergency evacuation training, functioning alarm systems and specialised procedures for moving critically ill patients are fundamental requirements of any modern healthcare facility.
"Public hospitals should be held to safety standards no less stringent than those expected of private healthcare facilities," he said.
He called on the Health Ministry to publish the full report and provide an account of which recommendations had been implemented, which remained outstanding and what measures had been taken to improve patient and staff safety in government hospitals.
The Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam), through its chairman and former inquiry committee chairman, Hishamudin, had also called for the findings to be made public.
The fire broke out in the hospital's intensive care unit on Oct 25, 2016, killing six patients and raising concerns over fire safety and emergency preparedness at public hospitals.
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