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| Friday, 16 July 2004 |
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Letters | |
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Please forward your letters to editor@dailynews.lk in plain text format within the e-mail message, since as a policy we do not open any attachments.
State fraud is a heinous crime and an act of treason. In other countries State Courts act swiftly because public funds are involved and the sentence is severe viz.: Death by hanging Shooting Electric chair The public clamour for justice against culprits in such situations has reached unlimited proportions never before seen or heard of in Sri Lanka and also such clamour is due to the laxity of the authorities. To quote hackneyed expressions about justice using words like 'done', 'seem to be done', 'appear to be done' are eye-wash and laughable in this country. Anticipatory Bail 'Appears' to be the new judicial fad to give relief to the swindler, even though his passport is confiscated and asked to report to the nearest police station which means nothing to the public. In some countries special tribunals are set up. Sometimes there are ten judges on the bench and they are able to 'read' the background and 'foreground' of the swindler brought before them, giving possibly a cursory hearing to the decoction of the defence. In a recently listed case on State frauds involving billions of rupees, anticipatory bail was allowed and worse a long date was given for the next hearing. In general bail appears to be the first item on the case agenda and the actual crime is not taken up for argument. This shows the indifference to the public outcry for justice. The swindler is released, 'depositing' swindled funds which is nothing but a signed piece of paper. Courts too exist on public funds. The special tribunals are set up for such treacherous crimes to appease the public, expediting the criminal process for justice. It baffles me why it is not considered here instead of our laissez-faire courts. When simple cases take as long as 14 years to conclude, in fact one of your very recent publications reported a woman in remand for nine years on a murder charge, it is a matter for conjecture about the end result of State swindlers and next we find them contesting the next election perhaps to carry on from where they left. Justice - my foot! N. B. MELVILLE PERERA - Kohuwala. The decision of the Ministry of Transport (D/N June 18) to call upon trishaw drivers to fix meters in their vehicles used for hire is timely. At present these drivers quote fabulous rates for hire and quite often the passenger has to bargain for a reasonable amount sometimes to the extent of losing his/her self-respect. As during the past Morris Minor-days, charge according to meters should be made compulsory without depending on the moods of the driver. It was mentioned by the Minister of Transport that around 800 trishaws are registered a day. At this rate the existing road space in the country may be congested to such an extent that there will be no room for other vehicles. Every one will accept that these vehicles are mainly responsible for most of the road accidents and indiscipline. They drive recklessly and turn, swerve, overtake at odd and dangerous places and park anywhere they desire, be they pavements or middle of the roads and no one cares. In regard to congestion, we have beaten even the most congested cities like Bangkok, Mumbai, Madras and others in the Eastern countries. The most compelling reason to limit the number of three wheelers is the lack of parking areas. Main cities and towns where movement of trishaws are heavy, the local authorities must provide demarcated areas for their parking and parking should be permitted only in these areas. I have heard a visitor to the country making a caustic remark that in Colombo there are more three wheelers than human beings! I kindly request the Minister to pass legislation immediately, if not available already, to make it compulsory for taxi meters for trishaws. W. Karunaweera - Nugegoda. Extracts from the oration of Dr. Lakshman Marasinghe, Emeritus Professor of Law, University of Windsor, Canada, on Dr. Colvin R. de Silva, appeared in the Daily News of June 18 under the above heading and he has stated inter alia thus: "He (Dr. Colvin) told the SLFP Government speaking from the front bench of the opposition: 'Give one language, you have two nations. Give two languages, you have one nation' -" Having quoted what Dr. Colvin R. de Silva said when the official language bill was presented in Parliament in 1956, Dr. Marasinghe almost deifies Dr. Colvin for his statement, totally ignoring the events that followed. In 1966, the LSSP was in the then Opposition when Prime Minister Dudley Senanayaka presented the 'Tamil Languages Special Provisions Bill' on January 8, 1966. The LSSP consisting of Dr. N. M. Perera and Dr. Colvin R. de Silva et al, together with the other opposition members went in procession against the said Bill, calling slogans like 'Dadlige Baday Masala Waday'. Moreover, when the LSSP was a partner in the coalition Government formed in 1970, they did not do anything to implement what was purported to have been demanded by them in 1956. Instead, Colvin himself drafted the 1972 Constitution which contained nothing of what he is purported to have demanded in 1956, and the LSSP continued to hold office under the said constitution. It appears that the LSSP matured with the passage of time and ensured that what is best for the country was enshrined in the 1972 Constitution. Therefore when Dr. N. M. Perera, Dr. Colvin R. de Silva or the LSSP as a party, are being commemorated, the professors, intellectuals etc., should refrain from chanting the mantram purported, to have been uttered by Dr. Colvin in 1956, since it has not relevance at all in the current context and since it has been discarded by the originators themselves in 1966 and 1972. Politicians should be judged on what they did and said on reaching political maturity with the passage of time and not on what they said at the infancy of their political career in a state of political immaturity. Moreover, if Professor Marasinghe cares to peruse the Indian Constitution (article 343) he will find that in India, with a population of nearly 60 million Tamils, there is only one national flag, one national anthem and the official language is Hindi. Apparently, there were no prophets like Colvin in India, when the Indian Constitution was approved, to say, one language, two nations, two languages one nation. Mercifully, India is having no problem with their current Constitution. The ordinary readers/citizens of this country would like to hear Professor Marasinghe's views on what is stated herein. D. SIRIRATNA - Ambalangoda. Selection of teachers for the North and East Admission cards have been posted for the above examination to be held on 24th of this month and noted that the examination centres allocated for the Muslim and Tamil candidates are in Sinhala area schools. I think the Government had made a wise decision to avoid malpractices in conducting the examination. I feel this has to be practised for the GCE (Advanced Level) also as the supervisors and the officers who are conducting the examinations in this area are subject to various mischiefs which need not be explained in detail. In order to get selection the candidates have to sit for an Aptitude Test and General Knowledge paper in Tamil medium which seems to be reasonable for all the categories of teachers but not for the selection of English teachers and I feel that the government has taken an otherwise decision in this matter. The government has to set a different paper in English medium to test the knowledge of English. The candidates of all the streams except the English teachers have gained further knowledge in their subjects like Maths, Science, Tamil, Commerce and Accounts and etc. at the GCE (Advanced Level). The English teachers have not gained any further knowledge in English language after their GCE (O/L). Hence definitely we can judge that the Government is selecting the wrong candidates to teach English language. Hence I hope the authority concerned will take necessary action to change the criteria in the selection of English teachers. A. L. M. Subair - Sammanthurai. Dehiwela canal a national treasure If any other country had Dehiwela canal, it would have been considered a country heritage and would have made millions through tourism. In other countries, such canals are maintained, cleaned with flowerbeds on the bank, and opened for boat riding. Ours is the curse of the city, with garbage dumped non-stop providing a permanent birthplace for the mosquitoes; no wonder Dehiwela is rampant with Dengue. If the banks are built with protective railings along it, even the shanty dwellers will stop throwing their garbage in. The shanties, must either be shifted elsewhere or the Government could put up dwellings in a planned manner, with proper water supply and garbage disposal system, so that it can look picturesque. Yes, it is going to cost millions, but a fewer number of vehicles to the politicians would do the trick! DR. MAREENA THAHA REFFAI - Dehiwela. Bank of Ceylon senior employees It is really heart-warming to learn that the Bankers to the Nation has taken laudable decision just before the New Year to appreciate and reward the good work done by her employees by granting performance incentive payments to staff in recognition of their dedicated contribution for achieving a substantial pre-tax profit in the year 2003 over that of the previous year. However, it is regrettable and heart breaking to come to know that in implementing this decision, authorities have overlooked and ignored the dedicated service rendered by the senior employees who have retired during the year 2003. Any fair thinking person would realize that the retirees of 2003 also have contributed in no-small way to achieve the above stated substantial pre-tax profit as at 31/12/2003. Hence they too should have been rewarded accordingly. Hence I call-upon the management of our Mother Bank to rectify this omission by paying the retirees of year 2003 too, proportionately to the number of days they have served-up to the date of retirement in the year 2003. Q. K. - Ampitiya. Salary anomalies for pensioners On the recommendations of the Salaries Anomalies Commission Report, several pensioners are to receive arrears due to them for many months. We have been informed that arrears due have already been paid to pensioners in the Galle district, along with their April pension payments. May I appeal to the authorities responsible, for the payment of all arrears, to ensure that our arrears are paid without any further delay. CP - Colombo 5. |
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