VET: Rein in the corrupt

Once again we see a move designed by the Government in the interest of the public coming unstuck due to the cancer of corruption. Time and again various Governments have come up with plans to secure benefits to the public only to have them put on the backburner due to the lack of the political will or political compulsions.

A good example of this is the Norachcholai coal power project. All Governments until now dilly dallied with the project due to various pressures with the result that the CEB is now paying astronomical sums to purchase electricity with the public having to take the tab.

Thankfully, President Mahinda Rajapaksa had the courage to go ahead with the project which is now nearing completion, shoving aside the political fall out, thinking first of the country.

In the same way, this Government should be commended for taking firm measures to combat air pollution by motor vehicles when only feeble attempts were made in this regard in the past.

There was also the well-known case of Smoke Meters being imported for the purpose under the UNP administration. No one yet knows what became of these gadgets.

Be that as it may, now even this vehicle emission testing (VET) scheme introduced by the Government making it compulsory for vehicles to obtain an anti-pollution clearance certificate appears to have run into a snag due to sleight of hand manipulation.

Our front page story yesterday revealed how efforts to stop noxious vehicle emissions from entering the environment is being undermined by corrupt elements at the ‘testing centres.

According to the story, bogus certificates are being issued giving a clean bill of health to vehicles which have to undergo a vehicle emission test for renewal of licences.

Environment Minister Champika Ranawaka has warned of stern action against those trying to scuttle the scheme to rid the cities of environment pollution that has led to various diseases and ailments such as cancer and respiratory problems.

It is to the credit of the Government that it considered the matter of air pollution by vehicles seriously and took concrete measures to combat the problem.

The result is the establishment of designated vehicle testing centres that checked vehicles to ensure their bellies were clean of the substances that ejected noxious black plumes into the environment posing a grave health hazard.

In this regard, Transport Minister Dullus Alahapperuma too should be commended for steadfastly pursuing with the project not heeding to the political fall out this would entail.

We say this because all past attempts to rein in polluting motor vehicles came against a blank wall due to the fear by the politicians of the day to antagonise the vast army of motorists particularly the private bus drivers by forcing them to toe the line.

Not only that we were often confronted with the familiar sight of traffic policemen at intersections wearing handkerchief masks to escape the noxious vehicle fumes instead of apprehending and charging the offenders.

The hard line adopted by the Minister should be taken all the way to ensure the corrupt elements at these centres are hounded out. No obstacle should be allowed to stand in the way of success of this operation that is finally being implemented after much misgiving and procrastination.

Special decoys should be deployed to keep an eye on these elements and lightning raids carried out on these centres to arrest the corrupt. No doubt, a large number of motorists are bound to find ways to shirk the testing since most of these vehicles would have to be completely overhauled first before they are brought to perfect order.

They would rather oil palms to obtain a clearance certificate than go to the extent of incurring heavy expenses to re-condition their vehicles. This is where the Minister should stand firm.

There should be no political influence to get any errant motorist off the hook. Already the nation has suffered enough by way of abandoned plans that would have benefited the people, due to political interference.

The moonshine racket is one example where political influence has caused much harm and damage to the fabric of society. The vehicle emission test assumes much more importance due to its direct relevance to the health of the population. The National Health Budget could be spared extra burden if this scheme is implemented with a 100 percent success.

Minister Ranawaka’s firm insistence that he would not tolerate any interference from any quarter augers well for the future. He should receive the full backing of all his Cabinet colleagues to see through this program without a hitch.