Ensure the PHI’s security
The fiendish killing of a Public Health Inspector in
Kantale in the East, who was, apparently, merely carrying out
his duty, is a pointer to the rising criminality in this
country. Among other things, it is an indication that the local
law and order situation needs constant watching. Considering
these alarming trends, President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s decision to
establish more police stations countrywide is a timely
initiative which we hope would make a notable dent in the crime
wave.
The state is engaged in a massive public awareness raising
exercise with regard to curbing the dengue disease and it seems
that the populace would also need to be told that since our PHIs
are discharging a vital duty, which would help in enhancing the
public good, their functions must be facilitated by the people.
In other words, our PHIs are public servants who should be
befriended by the public and enabled to carry out their duties,
rather than being savaged and murdered. Such brutality, it must
be pointed out, will only undermine the public good and bring
upon the perpetrator of the relevant crime the full force of the
law.
The situation with regard to dengue is somewhat desperate and
the PHIs must in no way be hindered in the discharge of their
duties. Scores of persons have died as a result of dengue and
the disease must be fought and defeated with the utmost strength
of the state and the people. Accordingly, the state could in no
way turn a blind eye on those who get in the way of health
personnel carrying out their duties.
The killers of the PHI in question must be brought to justice
and lawless sections warned that they cannot stand in the way of
public servants carrying out their responsibilities.
In view of the gravity of the situation, the state would need
to provide our PHIs with the maximum security. The lives of
these personnel could in no way be exposed to any risks and
their movements in no way trammeled. On and off, it was reported
that these PHIs were harassed by irate sections of the public
but it was perhaps never imagined in any responsible quarter
that a PHI would be compelled to pay with his life for doing his
duty. However, the writing is on the wall now and the state
would need to come down heavily on lawless sections which are
intent on even getting in the way of our health personnel.
As some authorities have pointed out, dengue eradication is
more an environmental than a public health issue. This is in
consideration of the fact that it is unkempt physical
environments that play a main role in the breeding and spread of
dengue. For instance, it is now ascertained that unattended
receptacles and containers where still water accumulates, are
key factors in the breeding of dengue larvae. Therefore, all
that householders and other relevant sections ought to do is
ensure that their surroundings are free of these disposables
that help in retaining water. Keeping our surroundings clean, in
other words, is the principal requirement.
Business premises, inasmuch as household precincts, are prone
to generate the conditions that could facilitate the dengue
mosquito. There are businesses that require receptacles and
containers, when once carelessly disposed of, could help in
breeding the dengue mosquito.
There are some small-time businesses that find these
receptacles essential for the conduct of their operations, shady
or otherwise. Such operators are likely to oppose our health
personnel but the state is obliged to ensure that nothing gets
in the way of the PHIs carrying out their duties.
So, the state is duty-bound to provide our health personnel
with the necessary security. Meanwhile, it is best that dengue
be controlled on a war footing. New regulations would need to be
brought into force to ensure compliance on the part of the
public with the country’s health requirements. Laws may need to
be brought in to render illegal those acts of omission and
commission which hinder our health personnel in carrying out
their duties. The national interest should be enshrined as
supreme and inviolable. |