|
|
 |
 |
 |
| Monday, 16 June 2003 |
 |
|
 |
Letters | |
| News Business Features Editorial Security Politics World Sports Obituaries
|
Please forward your letters to [email protected] in plain text format within the e-mail message, since as a policy we do not open any attachments. Innocent lives taken - who cares? Daisy Ann Hamer, as the whole grieving nation has come to know, was a committed employee of a reputed hotel in Mt. Lavinia. The writer came to know her, when he called over at the hotel over some wedding arrangements. She knew exactly how to treat clients and was persuasive in such a charming and accommodating manner, that the booking was effected spontaneously and with the least fuss. She was, I believe, extremely popular with her colleagues and bosses. Unfortunately this innocent young Lady, along with her father and brother were murdered so brutally and ruthlessly, over what seems like a land dispute. However, the manner in which these lives were taken makes one wonder what type of beasts live and breathe among us. Imagine the horror and sheer helplessness that she would have felt when confronted by some frightening beasts at whose mercy she was thrown, when entering the sanctuary of her own home in Dehiwela. The bestial and utterly painful manner in which the family were killed and their bodies mutilated and defiled can only point to the possibility that at least one of the interested parties were among the perpetrators of this heinous crime. This was cold, callous, premeditated murder, full of hate and venom. Even ruthless contract killers would have dealt out instant death and not subjected them to such excruciating pain when taking their lives. This brings to mind the untimely death of an elderly lady at Ward Place, Colombo 7, a few years back, where the servant and her accomplice subjected her to 5 hours of torture, as in their own words, they wanted to have the sadistic satisfaction of seeing her die slowly. There is quite a possibility that these murderers are now free and able to continue their murderous ways as the members of this lady's family live abroad and were unable to attend the court cases. Apparently, the modus operandi of these two were for the woman to obtain employment with a lady living on her own, start stealing things from her and when they were done to murder her so that they would not be traced. It is obvious that when these criminal elements know that they cannot be punished severely, given rough treatment or even convicted, due to lack of witnesses and they can threaten witnesses not to testify against them and get away with it with impunity, they grow bolder and the nation becomes a breeding ground for criminals and murderers. Unfortunately, there are so called "do-gooders", who are against treating criminals harshly and even against imposing capital punishment. Recently, in a letter published in a newspaper the "writer" has stated his willingness to allow his killer to be freed from capital punishment, if the writer happened to be murdered. I wonder if he would have the same thoughts if a gang of thugs were to enter his home and stab his family members repeatedly in the neck and other parts of their bodies and disembowel them, in front of his own eyes? What right do criminals or human 'beasts' with twisted minds, have, to take a life or a number of lives of innocent helpless people and claim violation of their human rights, when they are lawfully subject to punishment, according to the gravity of their crimes, when they themselves have unlawfully violated the human rights of their innocent victims and also brought disruption, loss and untold grief to the lives of their family members and loved ones? If criminals do not expect severe punishment, even the death penalty
for their heinous crimes all law abiding citizens will have to live in
fear of being robbed and murdered any time and without any protection.
It's the moral deterrent of the death penalty that counts most in ensuring
that the human rights of innocent and law abiding citizens, are protected. Low interest on savings deposits Interest payable on savings deposits has come down sharply causing much economic hardship to those depositors, who have invested their monies to earn interest, as an income, to meet their daily needs. People, except public servants, at the time of their retirement, receive a lump sum from the money lying to their credit in the EPF and ETF. This money is very often deposited in banks as Fixed Deposits, and draw interest monthly to make use of when necessity arises. Now, the cost of living has risen sky-high, and the reduction in the interest rate has proved to be a severe blow on those who depend on such income. While salaries and pensions have been increased to satisfy the needs of the public servants, the interest payable on deposits to other employees has come down to their disadvantage. The only solace of the private sector employees is their money in the EPF and ETF accounts. The Government collects this money, through Treasury Bills, for investment in public undertakings and development projects. The Central Bank, with the concurrence of the Minister of Finance, must consider this matter purely on a rational basis, and increase interests on savings, at least on a sliding scale, i.e., 15% below Rs. 200,000; 13% up to Rs. 300,000, 9% up to Rs. 500,000 and 7% above Rs. 500,000. The National Savings Bank (NSB) pays 8.5% interest on Fixed Deposits
and 8.2% on savings deposits. On this basis, a man who has deposited Rs.
200,000 as a Fixed Deposit, will earn Rs. 1,416 monthly. This is lesser
than the minimum pension payable, to retired employees. O. Minister! Why
not reconsider the issue and increase the interest rate on Fixed Deposits? Residents of 8th Lane, Colpetty are experiencing untold misery and inconvenience owing to the authorities concerned not taking any action to widen the 8th Lane which has been ear-marked for road widening several years ago. In the sea side from Galle Face to Glen Aber place - Colpetty, 8th Lane has the highest number of residences including the Air-Force Residential Quarters and happens to be the most congested lane with frequent vehicular movement, further with the Bare-foot Car Park and other establishments down this lane, the road widening of 8th Lane is an urgent need. One often sees vehicles entering 8th Lane, backing out to give room for
vehicles to get on to the Galle Road, and as a result causes halting or
the slowing down of traffic movement in the Galle Road.Apart from the
hardship encountered by all who use 8th Lane, the proposed Marine Drive
justifies the widening of this Lane. Therefore will the relevant
authorities concerned take immediate action to widen this Lane ? Public transport: privatization or not? Privatization of SLTB is a controversial issue that arises during the regime of every government. Most politicians have burnt their fingers by trying to make a decision either way and is a very distasteful issue to all governing bodies. On one side, you have the strong union of private bus owners and on the other, you have the general public. The private bus owners are interested in profit maximization and therefore would oppose any potential threat to their ultimate goal, more profit. The public on the other hand, are interested in a convenient and economical mode of transport. Achieving a balance between these two extremes has become a Herculean task. Today this issue has arisen in a different guise, privatization of SLTB to one foreign body. Is the privatization of SLTB to one foreign body the panacea to all ailments? The private bus owners are threatened by the prospect of their clientele favouring the better service offered by such a company. Further, they state that they are in no position to compete with a big company with the difference in cost structure etc. The general public also is divided in their opinion. On one hand, they
look forward to a better service, enhanced convenience and reduced cost.
On the other hand, feelings of patriotism emerge as little by little state
enterprise is sold to foreign bodies. Is there a perfect reply? We are
left awaiting the final decision of the authorities that be to the crucial
question, privatization of public transport or not? Your excellent editorial titled "Stop the Buccaneers" of 26th May should be read and re-read by all NGOs, private groups, organizations and individuals. My own view is that all items of food, uniforms, books etc should be handed over to the Chief Priests of the various temples in the 5 districts devastated by the floods. The Chief Priest of each district along with other priests, Dayakayas, Grama Sevakas, police officers of the areas and school teachers should put their heads together and prepare a register of the names and addresses of those to whom relief is intended and monitor this very closely. The teachers will be able to identify the students who deserve relief. The Grama Sevakas could identify those who are from their respective districts. If there is hoarding by unscrupulous traders of items meant for the victims, the Police could call for receipts from the traders as to their source of purchase. Buddhist priests from all parts of the country must get involved in the distribution of flood relief in these 5 districts. Wealthy Dayakayas can be approached to provide transport instead of depending on private lorries to carry relief supplies as these are likely to end up in bazaars. I hope this letter will catch the eyes of those for whom it is
intended. The prime need of the hour is honesty, dedication and
cooperation. Also, by involving the religious clergy in such an effort,
there is no room for political parties to use the situation to gain
political mileage for themselves. Close to my residence is a junction where five lanes meet. Viz: Old Moor Street, New Moor Street, Dam Street (which diverts into two streets at the junction) and Kachcheri Road. I have tried my level best to cross safely but the busy vehicles and the absence of a pedestrian crossing seem to make an easy crossing a deadly one. There had been so many road accidents right at this junction, and no one has spoken a word. A simple solution would be erecting a pillar and constructing a
round-about. This would bring down the hustle and bustle to a great
extent. Printers and publishers of books and translations of books of other languages have sprung up like mushrooms in the city of Colombo and suburbs. The media often highlights new publications that see the daylight almost every week. Such publications are often expensive and beyond the reach of the students and those in the low-income group who have a thirst for knowledge. It may also be mentioned that some publications are printed in low quality paper and are not available to be borrowed from public libraries. Let this be a wake-up call to those in the printing trade whose only
aim appears to be to reap high profits. "I own a house within the Dehiwela - Mt. Lavinia Municipality and was paying Annual Assessment Rates for a long time. But, when I read my Annual Assessment for my house for the year 2003, I nearly fainted. It was a 500% increase from the previous year. I sat for a while and attempted to figure out the rationale for such a high increase of the rates. I was critically analyzing the services rendered by the Municipality and to my surprise I found that the quality of services rendered have been severely deteriorated. The most visible service of garbage collection is virtually non-existent, as, on almost all streets there are heaps of rotting and stinking uncollected garbage. It was my frank view that instead of increasing the rates there should have been a reduction in proportion to the decline of the services rendered. Fully convinced that the increase of the Assessment Rates was quite unjustifiable and unaffordable, I made a humble appeal to review my Assessment giving sound reasons for doing so. For my appeal dated December 20, 2002, I received a reply dated January 07, 2003 stating that I will be summoned for an inquiry. When I received this reply in a printed letter in mid February in which my Assessment number and the date of my letter were written by hand, I was suspecting the efficiency of our postal service. However on seeing the Dehiwela post office date stamp clearly displaying the date as 13.02.03 in the outer cover of the letter, I had to politely withdraw my accusing finger directed at the postal service. It is June 2003 and after over six months of sending my appeal, am waiting anxiously the summons for the inquiry. I have not yet paid my rates as I am expecting a ruling on my submissions. But I am now worried as according to information I received from different sources, I will have no choice but to pay same with a substantial late payment fine. We tax payers by looking at certain things happening feel that the city fathers have either misunderstood or mixed up their roles. We have seen the Dehiwela-Mt. Lavinia Municipal authorities spending quite a lot of time, effort and resources in celebrating festivals in grand scale. While blessing them for their meritorious acts we strongly feel that administering the affairs of the city should be their top priority. The city dwellers have voted them to the high political offices with the expectation that they through sound administration of the city make the lives of the city dwellers comfortable. No taxpayer expects them to spend their time and municipality resources
on celebrations at the neglect of their primary obligation.
|
|
News | Business | Features
| Editorial | Security
Produced by Lake House |
