Letters
View(s):A bus service that would be of great service to the people
There is no bus service from Kuliyapitiya or from Welipennagahamulla through Navasigahawatte junction to Kandanegedara.
The state bus service which operates from Kuliyapitiya through Horatapola ends journey at Navasigahawatte junction while private buses from Welipennagahamulla go to Kuliyapitiya through Navasigahawatte junction.
As a result, the people who have to go to the hospital at Kandanegedara for treatment, to attend clinics and visit patients are greatly inconvenienced. They have to either walk the distance from Navasigahawatte or hire a three-wheeler at a cost of Rs. 200.
If state transport authorities could run a bus service from Navasigahawatte junction to Kandanegedara at 7.30 a.m., 11.30 a.m. and 4.30 p.m. daily, it will be of much service to the people. I hope the Sri Lanka Transport Board will consider my request and act immediately in the public interest.
D.S. de Silva
Navasigahawatte
What I want from a presidential candidate
The present President came to be elected as the common candidate of left of centre political parties on a policy of doing away with the presidential system of government. But he has failed to keep this election pledge. Hence he has no moral right to run for a third term.
The main opposition party has been riddled by political crossovers for selfish purposes and none of the crisscrossing politicians should be elected at the next parliamentary elections.
It is likely that the next presidential election will be between two common candidates — one from the ruling coalition and the other from the joint opposition.
I, for one, will vote for a candidate who will pledge to abolish the presidential system, correct the injustices imposed on the people, expose those who have amassed ill-gotten wealth and bring them to justice.
L.S. de Silva
Piliyandala
Waiting and waiting for email replies
Nimal Chandrasena’s letter from Australia in last week’s Sunday Times on the uselessness of Lankans with email should be an eye-opener for Sri Lankan Government Departments and other institutions. What he has said is 100 percent true as I also have experienced similar incidents dealing with Govt. banks and the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL).
I sent an email to Central Bank (to the email address given on their website) 15 days ago querying some banking regulation as I suspected that the bank is on the wrong path and it remains unanswered. Two months ago I sent an email to BOC credit cards email address, requesting them to activate my credit card which was de-activated due to misplacement in the home itself. They replied after two weeks + three reminders asking me to send them a scanned /signed copy of the request letter.
In comparison, some private banks and private telecom service providers are on the fast track for their email queries from their customers – within a few hours (on working days) we get a reply.
What I think the reason for this sad state of affairs is that emails are not manned daily and are there as they are given free when constituting their websites. Most people would like to make a request or complaint via email rather than on the phone as they have a record of their complaint in the computer as proof. Another reason is that on the phone it is difficult for senior citizens as the receiving computerized end gives a series of instructions - press 1 to go to 2 and press 3 to go next etc etc. – which seniors cannot remember by the time it comes to the 7th or 8th step.
The very popular info@ ………., email inquiries system should revamped and upgraded – they should be attended to within 24 hours, in the government and private sector by having a dedicated official with a high sense of responsibility, to man the email inquiry receiving computers. This is what we need in this fast developing world -if not we will be left behind or cut off from the rest of the world.
Sumith de Silva
Polgasowita
Cricket money and SLC mismanagement
For quite some time there has been a great deal of discussion about the ‘morality’ of our top cricketers amassing wealth by taking part in Indian T20 tournaments apart from what they earn locally. The latter no doubt being a pittance to what can be earned on the Indian circuit.
Some say this and some say that. But in this process some important features are overlooked.
The victorious Lankan team with the T20 World Cup
1. Is it not a fact that Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC), the governing body, has got into a colossal financial mess due, not to any fault of our cricketers, but to the mismanagement of funds by the management.
This mismanagement has been going on for some years, without any action being taken by the Sports Minister. Is this because the latter is powerless to exercise control of the management of finances (he should refrain from interfering with the selection committee, for the sake of the game) or due to the fact that some highly placed officials are given protection by higher beings because they are political servants rather than public servants?
2. Is the financial mess reflected in the battle between the players and the SLC, which tries to cushion its losses by depriving the players of the remuneration commensurate with their service to cricket and thereby to the country?
3. How many years can a high performer continue at his high level of performance before he has to retire from the game and cease to earn what he earned? Does he retire at 55 with a pension?
Since his period of productivity is severely restricted (unlike other professionals), is it not legitimate and quite moral on his part to attempt to earn the maximum possible during the restricted period during which he is capable of doing so?
4. It is the duty of a responsible and sensitive management to ensure that Sri Lankan cricket is not neglected. This calls for diplomacy and tact and not a bull-in-the-china-shop approach which only creates rancour and promotes discord which can affect the morale of the players and the lowering of standards of performance.
Let the critics of the cricketers and the people in high places (cushioned in air conditioned comfort) who are not exposed to the sun and heat and a high probability of disqualifying injury, ponder these matters. In the meantime let the game go on leaving room for the unencumbered use of the bat and ball.
Just last Sunday our cricketers, once again, displayed the high quality of their performance, by annexing the T20 World Cup title.
Dr. Mark Amerasinghe
Kandy