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Polls amid developments

The hustle and bustle and cacophony of electioneering came to end at midnight yesterday as the curtain fell on the Western Province polls campaign that went through an unprecedented two full months with political party candidates intensifying their canvassing on the final lap during the last few days to charm and influence the voters of this largest and plum of all Province in the country.

Thankfully the campaign overall was violence free which bespoke of the maturity and equanimity of the voters of the Western Province. Hopefully this climate would prevail for the remainder of the period leading to the polling day and also thereafter. In this respect it is incumbent on the political party leaders to ensure their party supporters conduct themselves exemplarily and with restraint that would hopefully lead to a new political order as against the fractious and contentious political culture we have been witnessing in the recent past. So while it is all systems go, decidedly the voters do not have to look far to make their choice and not many options left either.

The polls comes in the wake of unprecedented developments in the country with the military all but vanquishing the once invincible LTTE and with the dawn of peace beckoning this fractured nation, while the country also just witnessed one of most spectacular human rescue operations the world has ever known.

It would therefore be puerile to imagine that the military gains combined with unprecedented drama unfolding in the North would fail to capture the imagination of the voters even to a greater degree than witnessed in the all the concluded provincial council elections so far.

We say this because the Western province particularly the Colombo city has borne the worst brunt of terrorist attacks outside the theatre of war with heavy deaths resulting from suicide attacks and bus bombings etc.

Therefore, any arrest or mitigation of this scenario would be more than welcome by the city folk who will be beholden to the Government for its success in eradicating the cause of this mayhem and destruction to life, putting aside all other loyalties.

Beside the Western Province too has peculiar demographies which are heavily weighted in favour of the Government. Although the UNP may have a degree of support in the urban sprawl of Colombo the hegemony that has been maintained historically by the SLFP and Left parties in the Gampaha and Kalutara Districts is bound to overwhelm this advantage in any event.

While the military victories would give more than an edge to the Government it will not be the only factor that is going to influence the voter at the election to the Western Province. The large scale development projects such as the flyovers and Highway expansion and development in other areas central to urban and city life too would not go unnoticed by the voter. The relatively less harsh consequences stemming from the global economic recession due to the prudent economic management by the Government and also the many benefits granted to the high concentration of the working class in the Colombo city and Western Province in general is also no doubt going to impact on the voter of the Western Province.


Saving electricity

The Ceylon Electricity Board has once again made it's ritual call to consumers to use electricity sparingly since the water levels in the hydro catchment areas have recorded low water levels. As stated by CEB Deputy General Manager S. Handagama 75 percent of our electricity needs are generated by fossil fuel while hydro power accounts for the balance 25 percent. He said the catchment areas were receiving only minuscule rainfall during the current inter-monsoonal period although certain other parts in the country have recorded heavy rainfall. He said the situation is precarious unless the expected South Western Monsoon sets in hopefully in May.

The heavy industrialisation coupled with unbridled consumerism that have ensnared our people particularly our youth in the post liberalisation era has also taxed the country's power resources to the limit so much so that the country is on the threshold of a major power crisis as warned by the CEB official. The just concluded festivities certainly would have not helped the cause of power conservation since more than 65 percent of the hinterland have now been electrified with more and more rural folk emulating their city counterparts in the use of computers and other electricity powered accessories.

What is needed however is to instil a civic duty in our people to act with a sense of responsibility and sacrifice until these projects are commissioned in the use of electricity for their daily requirements.

Sri Lanka Rupee:

Fluctuating fortunes

Globally, currency prices or exchange rates have been highly volatile in the recent past as a result of various factors connected with the current global financial crisis that started to emerge from August 2007.

Full Story

UPFA victory assured

- Attorney Palitha Gamage

Lawyers affiliated to the SLFP made a valuable contribution towards the victory of President Mahinda Rajapaksa at the last Presidential elections.

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Buddhism, a bridge to peace

The humanitarian operations are conducted in the North of Sri Lanka to destroy terrorists and not to destroy innocent Tamils, said Most Ven. Udugama Sri Buddharakkhita Mahanayake Thera of the Asgiriya Chapter.

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