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A weekend paper reported that a number of bank directors including
some chairmen are due to step down by end December due to a directive
issued by the regulator, the Central Bank, in 2007. This has been
reported in the wrong perspective.
One should examine the reasons behind such a directive. Take the case
of the fiasco at the Ceylinco group in the recent past. It was known
that the chairman of Ceylinco who was also the chairman of the Seylan
Bank at that time took the Central Bank to courts on this piece of
legislation demanding that he and his kith and kin be allowed to remain
directors/chairman. However the Central Bank stood firm. Two years
didn’t pass, the wisdom of the Central Bank was proven beyond any doubt.
The Seylan Bank and its depositors were saved due to the Central Bank
and the government moving at the nick of time.
I recollect Central Bank’s original directive was more stringent with
plans for phased out changes on directorates and probably due to the hue
and cry of some of these directors they, the Central bank, extended
concessions. Those concessions mainly were to see that a smooth
transition is taking place. Nevertheless, now it seems a number of
directors are in a queue to retire this year.
This is a good action though some may think otherwise. Good to get
rid of old ageing directors, who had held on to such positions over
10-20 or even more years. The younger blood would do well, no doubt.
A Retired Senior Banker
There is one class of people who have suffered in silence for long as
their grievances have received neither the public spotlight nor the
attention of the authorities.
I refer to those public servants who had to retire prematurely due to
the issue of proficiency in Sinhala. They were those who received their
education in English medium and opted to work in English medium. With
the switch over to the national languages in the medium of the
administration they had no alternative but to retire prematurely.
They had to forego their promotions and also many increments of
salary. As they could not complete their full term of service they also
received lower percentages of their retiring salaries as pensions.
Majority of these pensioners are now dead and gone. There are however a
fair number of them who are still alive.
They are all in their 80s and 90s who in addition to the travails of
old age have also to engage in an unequal struggle to make ends meet
with these paltry pensions.
There is also a fair number of widows and dependants who are still
surviving and struggling to make ends meet.
Justice demands that these senior citizens receive some form of
relief so that they can at least make the twilight years of their lives
a little less burdensome and a little more meaningful.
W A G Wickramasinghe – Kaduwela
The tireless efforts and the dedication of the Welikada police
station under the guidance of Kasthoori helped to make a breakthrough in
a theft that occurred at a residence near our locality (Rajagiriya)
recently.
A labourer who is known to this family had entered their residence by
unlocking the front door and got away with a gold bangle and three rings
that were safely kept in a box in the drawer of the wardrobe.
No sooner had the complaint been made, the OIC Kasthoori, SI Sampath
and acting OIC Chanaka along with his team of policemen in charge of the
crime division devised a clever plan to arrest the culprit. The whole
team worked tirelessly to produce the culprit in court in a very short
time.
This is a good example for other government servants of whom some
drag the cases causing red tape and other bureaucratic delays. The
Welikada police dutifully carried out their mission to arrest this thief
and took immediate measures to help the victim. Well done, Welikada
police station.
N U A R Udayar, Rajagiriya.
At present the traffic flowing from Colombo down Duplication Road are
diverted to Galle Road through Dickmans Road. Prior to this the traffic
was diverted to Galle Road through Bambalapitiya junction. I do not
think the present arrangement has achieved its purpose for which it was
introduced.
The reason is the Duplication road has to carry its usual traffic
coming down from Colombo in addition to the Galle Road traffic resulting
a congestion which even the police cannot resolve it. It took about 45
minutes to travel from De Vos avenue. Duplication junction to Wellawatte
recently. The agony suffered by the travelling public cannot be
expressed in words. I am appealing to the authorities to reconsider to
revert to the previous arrangement.
M Rajasingham Colombo 4
Turkey is presently enjoying a major economic boom while most of the
other countries in Europe are going down economically. Due to Turkey’s
economic revival prime minister Tayip Ergodan has been re-elected twice
democratically.
Sri Lanka seems to have low key relations with Turkey. It’s high time
we look into the possibility of having relations with Turkey at embassy
level and also explore a closer economic relationship. Turkey has been
friendly with Sri Lanka and we can never forget how the Turkish
government helped us during post tsunami.
M Ghouse
A pest is spreading and attacking coconut palms in the Kalutara
district.
The coconut leaves turn into pale yellow and coconuts fall from trees
within a short period. The coconut land owners are now frustrated and
they are wondering whether their cultivation would be affected by this
threat. They seek quick assistance and solutions from the concern
authorities.
c m Kamburawala
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