Sri Lanka's COVID19 response reached a new height today with a number of Parliamentarians, including Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena, taking doses of the "local medicine" produced by a witch doctor to cure COVID19.

The medicine is produced by an individual by the name of Dhammika Bandara, a person who runs a devalaya in the Kegalle district.

However, no medical institution — western or indigenous — has certified this medicine as a cure for COVID19 based on scientific or clinical evidence.

Despite the absence of any evidence, Health Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi publicly took a sip of this medicine prompting thousands of people to gather in front of the residence of the witch doctor to obtain samples of the alleged "COVID syrup".

However, the Association of Ayurvedic Medical Practitioners claimed that the so-called medicine was produced illegally and Ayurvedic doctors should not be held accountable if the drug causes adverse effects on the public.

The association also stated that the producer of the medicine, a person who claims to be an indigenous doctor, is not registered with the Ayurveda Department.

The Association stated that the concoction used for the so-called cure is not registered with the Yoga Code Committee at the Department of Ayurveda.

The President of the Ayuvedic Doctors’ Union, Dr. Chamal R. Mr. Kulathilake pointed out that such an unregistered drug couldn’t be accepted.

However, Dhammika Bandara, the person who produced the drug, continues to claim that this concoction has been used from the time of King Ravana — a king whose existence cannot be established with historical or archeological evidence.