SINGAPORE : Nearly 1,600 scholars have been recruited under the
Health Ministry's Scholarship Programme since 1994 but a small
minority, 26 of them, have absconded. And they did so without
paying liquidated damages.
Replying to a question in Parliament, Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan
says all but one of the absconders were nurses from China.
Mr Khaw says his Ministry has set guidelines to help hospitals deal
with such default cases. This includes coordinating with the
relevant authorities to cancel their work permits and student
passes.
Steps are also taken to contact their guarantors.
If all efforts fail, legal assistance may be pursued.
Presently, some 700 of the scholars have already begun serving
their bonds in Singapore hospitals after their training at Nanyang
Polytechnic.
- CNA /ls