Opa At Your Service

 Questions and Answers

Qualification for pension

Question: A permanent pensionable public servant appointed at the age of 45 years completes the 10 years service at the age of 55 years.

If the employee has gone on no pay leave will this affect his entitlement of the pension? Can he ask for an extension to come up the period lost. Is the ten-year period counted in days?

Bandula - Ratmalana

Answer: From what we have been given to understand this person who was appointed to permanent pensionable public service at the age of 45 years is entitled to a pension on completion of 10 years service at the retirement age of 55 years.

The no pay leave the length of which you have not indicated should not affect his right to pension. Usually the gross period of employment is taken into account that is from appointment to retirement.

Although our answer is in general, it is best that this person verifies it himself with the Pensions Department as we are not aware of the length of his no pay and the terms and conditions if any applicable to the no pay leave.

He or she could ask for an extension and get the confirmation regarding the pension or enjoy the extension in any case if granted. The ten-year period is not counted in days.

Benefit of W and OP contribution

Question: Further to the question raised by H Edmund Perera, Badulla under the caption Refund of W OP contributions dated 17.02.2011.

Thanks for the reply given by you. Anyway this pushes me to pose another question on the same topic.

I am a pensioner who has contributed to the W and OP Fund since I was made permanent in my appointment. This I did to make my spouse happy after my demise. Unfortunately she passed away leaving me alone. I feel most miserable when I think how I contributed to W and OP with the sole idea of making my wife happy.

1. Whether there is any provision in the W and OP Fund Act to nominate somebody to get this refund.

2. If I marry again will the spouse be entitled to get this W and OP? The money I have contributed for a good cause.

3. If the spouse is divorced and enter into another marriage will the new spouse be entitled for the money I have contributed to the W and OP during my service.

4. Can I do anything, have I no right as this is my own contribution.

I hope your professionalism will assist to give us some solution in this respect.

M Perera - Ja-Ela

Answer: The way you have looked at your contribution to the W and OP Fund does not appear to be correct. One does not contribute to the W and OP Fund to make one’s wife happy. It is a necessity for the upkeep of one’s spouse in the case of the pensioners demise before his spouse.

Further it is a compulsory contribution unless it was not so in the early years? Only those who remain a bachelor or a spinster at the time of retirement can request for a refund of such contribution.

In the absence of your wife you can nominate any children who will be entitled to the W and OP upto the age of 26 years. Any disabled or differently abled child can receive the W and OP payment for life.

You cannot nominate anyone else. If you marry again your spouse will not be entitled to W and OP unless you were married again before going on retirement.

Same applies if you divorce and marry again it has to be before you go on retirement.

No you have no right to this contributions expect your wife after your demise (not applicable in your case as your wife has predeceased) you and children if any upto the age of 26 years and even for life if disabled.

Law against sound pollution

Question: Please enlighten me on the law relating to playing music by the shops to attract the customers.

Recently, I came to Sri Lanka from Canada and noticed that, it had developed well. Thanks to President Mahinda Rajapaksa it will be a developed country very soon, but law and order must be protected.

No point of having a law, if the authority concerned is not taking any action against the lawbreakers.

Eg: I stay at Elhena Road, Maharagama. I noticed, that a certain shop at Elhena Road, Maharagama on the High Level Road. I inquired from a nearby shop owner. He told me that it plays music from 9.30 am till 9 pm daily.

Music blares out of this shop even on Poya days.

Please enlighten me on who is responsible for law implementation. Why are the authorities silent about these lawbreakers? Anybody entering the Maharagama can notice this nuisance to the public.

Policeman on duty opposite this shop seems to turn a blind eye about this matter.

B J Perera - Maharagama

Answer: Currently, there is no law against community sound pollution but there is a law against industrial sound pollution. This is to control the sound pollution by factories (machines, generators etc).

We understand that there is a move to enact a law against sound pollution caused by the community. All are guided by a Supreme Court ruling that without the written authority of the Superintendent of Police of the area one cannot use loudspeakers between the hours of 10 pm to 6 am. This means anyone can cause sound pollution using loudspeakers between the hours of 6 am and 10 pm. You may seek police assistance for persuasion but not legal action. You can seek advice from the Central Environment Authority on tel 0112873447 or 0112873448.

A few days ago a news flash over the television media stated that the authorities are concerned about sound pollution caused by vehicles, specially buses that have modified exhaust system.

How to trace W and OP number

Question: I am a 84-year-old widow living with a handicapped daughter. My husband expired on 18.11.2009.

He was working as an Assistant Medical Practitioner in the Health Department.

After 20 years of service he was dismissed from service on 7.5.1971 while serving at peripheral unit Galagedara in the division of Superintendent of the Kandy Health Service. Now I need my widow and orphans number to apply for W OP scheme of pension.

We lost our W and OP number when our house was burnt in Trincomalee during 1985, without my W and OP number I can’t apply for W OP pension scheme.

As per letter No..... 01/01/82 dated 1/6/2007 (copy annexed) from Department of Pensions to my husband late P Kanagasabapathy that he made subscriptions to Widows and Orphans Scheme.

As per my letter dated 15.03.2010 to medical officer in charge peripheral unit Galagedara in the division of S H S Kandy (copy annexed) to send my W and OP number, no action taken by S H S Kandy to send my W OP number so far. As such I cannot apply for my W and OP pension.

Please advice me how to get my W and OP number and W and OP pension without this number at this old age.

K Chellammah - Thirunelvely, Jaffna

Answer: We contacted the RDHS (Regional Director of Health Services) office in Kandy and it took us a couple of weeks to get the requested information as we are referring to a 1971 file.

They did confirm having received a letter from you and after our following up they claim to have replied your letter in response to our inquiry. The have only forwarded his salary details for 1971 but not the W and OP number.

They checked their record room and informed us that your late husband had worked at the Galagedara Hospital only for few months and that his personal file was not transferred to them. They advice you to contact his immediately previous place of work. Also they say that he has worked in Jaffna at some stage and to check with the hospital there.

We also contacted the W and OP office and without a pension number, they say it is almost impossible to trace the W and OP number. Whilst we will try to look for ways of helping you we request you to write to the RDGS-Kandy at Housing Building, 56 Yatinuwara Veediya, Kandy and request for their assistance to trace the W OP number, giving all the particulars required.

Violation of basic Human Rights

Question: By restricting rent payable through the Rent Act No. 07 of 1972. Article 25.1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights advocated by the United Nations proclaims that “Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.

This implies that the ultimate goal of assuring the dignity of man cannot be achieved without that person enjoying all his or her rights. Respect for civil and political rights cannot be separated from the enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights while real economic and social development requires political and civil freedom.

It is these underlying principles, of interdependence and indivisibility, which guide the human rights and fundamental freedoms advocated by the United Nations. Unfortunately it appears that we in Sri Lanka have forgotten these other aspects of human rights. Especially that of the right to a livelihood and to adequate housing.

When the Law states that the business premises is governed the provision of the Rent Act No. 7 of 1972 only the owner of the premises is deprived of his real and Lawful income on rent based on the present market value, while everyone else, including the Lawyer, has his income based on today’s market values to fight the case to obtain the 1972 Rent value in 2007 conceding everything in favour of a unreasonable Tenant.

Therefore, the owner of the premises is compelled to provide a subsidy without any other option to one who does not require a subsidy in the payment of rent for no apparent reason event though the tenant has enormous profits and income and assets compared to the owner of the premises who is paid only a paltry sum based on the 1972 value.

Many violations of the Law can be made by the Tenant, to obtain income in excess of the subsidized rent paid by him and quite successfully.

The subsidized Rent paid under the Rent Act of 1972 ignores all violations by the tenant the Rent Act is really a good source of income for the Lawyers who can delay Justice for years which has not been looked into.

Is there any major disadvantage therefore under free economy to repeal the entire Rent Act of 1972 completely and eradicate law’s delay and prevent Human Rights Violation.

Ismeth Ghouse - Colombo 6

Answer: We do not agree with you in that the Rent Act of 1972 is a violation of the basic Human Right. You are only looking at it as an owner who has given his excess house on rent. If you look at the Act from the point of view of the tenant, it grants the tenant his basic Human Right.

If you are a single house owner you will be able to get possession without much difficulty for you to live in. Your grouse is that you are not able to raise the rental freely because of the Rent Act. It depends on how old your house is, if it was built after January 1, 1980 or if you have lived in it after this date for any period of time the Rent control is not applicable.

We would advise you to discuss your problem with an Attorney-at-Law who is well versed on the Rent Act in order to explore means of increasing your rent to market level. In 1972 when the Rent Act was brought in it was very much in favour of the tenant but it is not so to that extent now after all the changes to this Act. There are amendments event outside the Parliament introduced by the Ministers we understand.

Strengthening of Public Petition Committee

Question: Copy of the Parliament Debate published in the Daily News of 25.9.2004 is appended below.

Up to the time of writing no action has been taken by the relevant State institutions to amend the Constitution. This is a matter of grave concern as it affects the general public due to the reason that failures of the State institutions to implement the decisions of the PPC had caused severe problems and injustice to the public as they have no other place to complain. Please assist me to solve the longstanding issue, so that Public Petition Committee decisions are effectively implemented by the State institutions, once the amendment of the Constitution is implemented.

N P Shreshtan, - Trincomalee

Answer: We have been given to understand that the intended amendment has not gone through yet.

There is a Select Committee by Parliament who is addressing various amendments including the amendments to the provision of the Public Petition Committee.

However as regards your long-standing issue of non-implementation of the Public Petition Committee decision are concerned you need not wait for an amendment.

You should bring it to the notice of the Public Petition Committee who will take it up with the Speaker of the House.

The Speaker in turn will forward it to the Attorney General and the Attorney General can take it up at the Supreme Court.