• Budget 2007

• No more smoking in public places

• Education system, computer literacy and Dept. of Census and Statistics

• Identification parade!
  
  
  Budget 2007

The JVP says that the Budget is not people friendly; meaning most probably that that it has not provided salary increases and perks to employees.

They fail to understand that it is Country Friendly! The UNP says that the budget provides no avenues to bring down the Cost of Living. If this economists do not understand, it should get down foreign advisers with party funds.

When a country has an abundant money supply, the citizens invariably have more money in their hands, if not a dictatorship.

The higher money supply pushes prices up. It could be an unconscionable profiteering and black-marketing; but that does not last long, for competition among traders bring down prices to real levels.

A newspaper said that the Budget was a damp squib, attempting to be sensational. Journalists should write the truth, and not twist to accommodate their petty prejudices! They have a duty to write for their country.

The Tamil National Alliance is a proxy for the LTTE. It wants 'State terrorism' stopped. Who are the terrorists? Who killed the Jaffna Mayor, Alfred Duraiappah, Tiruchelvam, Amirthalingam, Lakshman Kadirgamar and a host of other Tamils who wanted amity with the Sinhalese and Muslims who were all Sri Lankans.

No negotiated political solution is possible for Prabakaran has clearly said at Heroes Day meeting that he would die for Eelam. Thamil Selvam has said that the LTTE would not stop until they have secured full autonomy, meaning a separate State of Tamil Eelam.

The TNA criticizes the large expenditure on Defence for they want to see the LTTE better armed.

Its funds come from taxing people who visit Eelam and the rest from secret foreign contributions and world bodies of which Sri Lanka holds membership!

Politically inspired, idling Government Servants stage protests and want salary adjustments but The Year 2006 Budget gave a 50 per cent increase in salaries and the balance has been provided or in the current 2007 Budget.

What more do they want? The Budget has accommodated expenses on the Maga neguma and Gama neguma projects. An Airport is come up in Wirawila, which will push up the economies of Hambantota, Tangalle, Matara and Galle and offer employments to thousands.

The Hambantota harbour and the Norochcholai electricity venture together with hillcountry proposal and the exploitation of the Eppawela rock Phosphate deposits will regain much for the country.

PETER RANATUNGA - Dehiwela

No more smoking in public places

After reading this news item, I was a bit amused. What is a public place? Who is going to police this? More corruption with the law enforcement agency.What a joke this is? First of all, to enforce a thing like this, we should educate our people.

Recent visit to Sri Lanka and spending three months there, I realised that the community as a whole very selfish, self centered and no respect to law and order. Let's go back to basics, and start all over again.

LALITH FERNANDO - Australia - via email

Education system, computer literacy and Dept. of Census and Statistics

The Island newspaper of November 2 carried a news item 'Schools close early today' in which it stated that "All Government schools, Government approved private schools and Pirivenas would close at 11 am today (2) to enable the Department of Census and Statistics to enumerate the computer literacy of teachers."

In the modern day, computer knowledge is becoming more important in every aspect of our lives and it is indeed encouraging to note that the Government is taking measures to educate teachers on the use of computer technology to enhance teaching skills in schools.

This will hopefully improve the standards of teaching and widen the horizons of both teachers and students. The Department of Census and Statistics must be commended for taking on the onerous task of doing an islandwide census on the computer literacy of teachers.

Why have principals of schools been excluded in this exercise? Computer knowledge in schools must start from the highest post in a school?

Before the Government takes a census on computer literacy, it is only natural that the teachers and principals need to be tested on their levels of English knowledge - this unfortunately would give us a deplorable picture of the quality of the staff!

More often than not, we Sri Lankans somehow 'put the cart before the horse' as it were. We are taking a census on computer literacy but do we ever take into consideration of how many schools in the country (excluding schools in cities and major towns), even have the basic utility facilities of electricity and telecommunications?

What is our proud track record to provide such basics to the rural schools? Are we being fair by rural schools in this operation or not? How much responsibility are the District Ministers of Education taking, in looking after the needs of rural schools in their districts? A fact-finding mission to these areas will reveal astounding results!

It would certainly be worthwhile, if the same department could do another census in the very near future, to determine how many 'qualified teachers' we have in the country to teach the subjects they are handling?

Whether these teachers qualify or not, should be decided on how many of their students go for extra tuition classes in the subjects those teachers do in school and how many teachers do tuition classes after school and force their students to attend them?

If the teacher is doing a good job, none of their students will be required to attend extra classes which are conducted by the very same teachers who earn money both from the Government as well as their own students!

Does this sound ethical to any educationist in this country? Any given student could be weak in one or two subjects which is to be expected.

However, if a student is attending tuition classes for all their subjects, then there is definitely something wrong with the teachers and their attitudes towards their students as well as their responsibilities towards the teaching profession as a whole - is this not so?

Children are turning out to be 'senseless machines' (like computers!), they have lost the 'joys of childhood' due to the insensitivity of those who handle education in this country. These children have absolutely no time to enjoy nature or to play with their neighbours!

Being a parent in our society today is by no means an easy task. Other than having to pay for their children's education requirements in schools (including extra curricular activities for which separate fees are collected), the parent also needs to find additional income to facilitate giving tuition to their children in almost every subject whether they like it or not!

An approximate estimate of what a parent needs to pay as tuition fees monthly for their children, could vary between Rs. 2,000 - Rs. 4,000 depending on which grade these children are in school.

To be able to accommodate such expenses, we need to guess what the monthly income of parents must be and also determine whether this is an acceptable practise or not? Does this not prove that the system of education in this country has deteriorated?

That the teachers are not performing their duties for which the Government is paying them a monthly wage?

The above facts are in relation to parents and children in the cities - the situation in the rural schools is far more pathetic because most schools do not even have the full quota of required teachers per school!

This is putting the rural student at a very great disadvantage as against students from the cities - is this not so?

Let us not resort to 'patch work' by getting volunteer teachers who are expected to work 'gratis' who are not enrolled into the regular payroll even after serving the Government for 4-6 years! If the regular Government teachers get a monthly wage plus bonus with additional tuition fees every month, don't these teachers deserve even a basic salary?

Are they not human beings who also need money for their daily expenses? We have read in the newspapers during the last couple of years (also seen some protests) of how these volunteer teachers have to resort to 'hunger strikes' to draw the attention of the officials to their pathetic situation. Is this the dignity they deserve as teachers?

Children of today will be the leaders of tomorrow. If they are not offered a 'wholesome education' which is the right of every child in this country, those responsible for shirking their responsibilities must be punished for the crimes committed against our children.

'Knowledge' is the only thing that will enable our children to become law-abiding, disciplined and decent citizens as well as our leaders of future Sri Lanka.

RAMANI D. WICKRAMARATNE - Kotte

Identification parade!

Will any one explain to the nation under which circumstances does an identification parade become compulsory? Because recently in connection with my father's murder case, there was an identification parade held after four months of the incident.

There were five persons directly involved in that murder case. Four persons including two prime suspects surrendered to the police and all of them accepted the brutal incident and surrendered through their respective lawyers except one who is still absconding.

In that identification parade four months after the incident, my stepmother, the prime witness to that case luckily could identify only the two prime suspects except the other two out of 34 persons kept on that parade.

The motive of the killing was robbery of over Rs. 30 million worth of gems from my father after killing him.

Their first and second attempts failed in different occasions, but their third attempt succeeded soon after my father returned from the mosque at around 8 PM on that fateful night, just before he attempted to take his last dinner.

Though all four criminals accepted the offence, then why the court official kept another 30 persons among the criminals to confuse the identification.

Thank god, finally my stepmother could identify two persons out of four. If she could not identify at all, what the case would be? I hope that someday at the high rank official of the court will amend the law of identification parade.

If compulsory only, to be kept the identification parade. What a law for identification parade for accused in accepted cases!

M. A. ISMATH - Beruwala