Letters
to the Editor
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their motto be to serve the people, not themselves
When I was a child, I remember how one political party would step down when another party won the election. It was a decent civilized handing over. The most we heard from the victor's side would be the lighting of a few fireworks. Today, the political culture of our country has turned into a "do-or-die" attitude. Decency has flown out of the window. Election time is a free-for-all to rig ballots, threaten opponents or even kill them and insult each other in abusive language. Politicians must remember that citizens of this country are looking for decent and civilized leadership. They need to set the example of how one plays the game of politics. It is not "whether you won or lost, but how you played the game". We expect our politicians to be honourable and civilized. If the politicians act in a civilized manner, the ordinary citizens will learn to respect each other, whether they are friends or foes. During the period prior to the elections of 1977, people who entered politics did so with a holistic feeling of doing service to one's community and country. They spent their own wealth for election campaigns as well as for community welfare work for their electorates. Today we have an arrogant and insensitive class of politicians who are far removed from the realities of our society. They smile with us only to seek our vote. After that, if and when an ordinary citizen needs to meet them to seek advice or help, they have first to pay homage to the many rings of security guards who surround these politicians whom we the citizens of this country have put on that pedestal! It is time for our politicians to think sincerely and honestly about their own roles in our society, what they stand for, what is the example they set for their own children and the children of others. Do they have a guilty conscience? Today the children of politicians are even more aggressive than their parents, they abuse public property and no one can advise them not even their own parents. Who has set this precedent - no one but their own parents. The majority of this country does not live in luxury. They lead a very hard life trying to make ends meet. A mere Rs. 10,000-15,000 a month to maintain a family of 4 or 5 persons is a nightmare for the ordinary citizen. To the politician and their families Rs. 15,000 for one meal at a five-star hotel is nothing at all. How and where did they get such money is a good question to ask. The average citizen goes into a grocery store and purchases 50-100 grams of any daily requirement because he cannot afford to purchase 500 grams or 1 kilo. It is no secret that people even purchase spoonfuls of milk powder from grocery stores because they can't afford to buy a 450 gram packet. It is a disgrace to know that parliamentarians enjoy first class buffet lunches at Rs. 10-15 whereas an ordinary packet of rice and curry on the streets is Rs. 35-40 for the ordinary citizen. Even that luxury can be accepted if the parliamentarians are hard working, honest and sincere in their work ethics. The ordinary citizen has no place to send his children to play as there are no public playgrounds. What the public has is also destroyed or sold by insensitive politicians to rich foreign buyers or developers. In our small country of 25,000 square miles we already have three golf courses and we are building yet another one in Kotte. Of course it is for the rich and famous. At the cost of a public stadium, a golf course is built. 50% of our country still doesn't have electricity but we were told that Sri Lanka will be the IT Centre of Asia! Rural government schools are being closed down because politicians involved are not interested in educating the rural children. Our farmers cannot sell their produce but imported food items are sold everywhere. The prosperity of a country is not judged by the imported goods displayed in the showcases, it is judged by the level of education, living standards and stable society. Politicians need to do some soul searching. Citizens of this country expect moral etiquette, decency in private and public lives, exemplary living, simplicity, honesty and sincerity. Leaders must think of the country first - not the commissions that they can earn by engaging in a foreign deal. They must be in the country and work for the country - not go globe-trotting 75% of the time. Those who hope to enter the political arena have a duty to safeguard and protect Sri Lanka, to help it develop into a decent, respectable and prosperous country. They have a beholden duty to bring back the lost prestige and self-respect of this nation. Their motto must be and should be, to serve the people, not themselves.
Darmitha Anomaly
of caste and the Nikaya system in Buddhism When members of other castes, notably Karawa Salgama and Durawa (KSD) sought entry into bhikkuhood, the Siyam Nikaya forbade it, hence they travelled to Burma, obtained higher ordination and formed the Amarapura Nikaya. A court case was instituted to deny the authority of this Nikaya but it was not upheld. The Amarapura Nikaya too has its caste subdivisions. Only the Ramanna Nikaya is free of the problems of caste. The Nikaya system sprang from the nature of Sinhala society, not the doctrine of Buddhism. Yet the three Nikayas came together and they work together on doctrinal and other important matters. The laity is not selective in the choice of priests or temple of any particular Nikaya in attending to their spiritual needs and all temples, be it the Dalada Maligawa or Atamasthanaya, are open to all; there is no restriction on temple entry. It is my fervent appeal to all the Mahanayake Theros to give serious consideration to rectifying this anomaly and permit everybody the right to be ordained in any Nikaya establishment. There certainly is an element of historicity in the formation of the Nikayas, so let the names and the trappings remain, while the membership is unrestricted. A cue may be taken from sports bodies like the Sinhalese Sports Club, the Tamil Union or the Burgher Recreation Club, which during an earlier point of time were communal in composition but are now open to all while still maintaining their distinctive historical identity. G.K.W.
Weeraratne Good
work needs backing Paid experts and expert committees will, I suppose, be beyond the reach of NASSL, which as its immediate Past President Dr. U. Pethiyagoda said recently, is hamstrung for money. One way out might be to appoint Voluntary Committees to do the work. I for one will be glad to serve on a Voluntary Committee to identify the issues in which science and technology are involved.
V. Basnayake Dissolution:
A bolt from the blue Many thought that the much-needed unity had been reached and that peace talks would soon resume. The President's speech was thought provoking. She spoke about the country and stressed the need for peace, unity and amity amongst all communities and religions. It was a long weekend that followed February 4 and many went on holidays with family and friends to enjoy the peace and tranquillity, never even dreaming of what was in store for the people of this country. The holiday ended abruptly with parliament being dissolved, non-cabinet and deputy ministers sacked and a state of uncertainty returned. The dissolution also affected students who were preparing for the Advanced Level examinations in early April. April is also the time for Sinhala and Tamil New Year celebrations but this festive period will now be shrouded in uncertainty. Some say that the timing of the elections was spurred by soothsayers - if this is true, it is sad that the future of the country is determined in this manner. Political violence in the run-up to the elections seems inevitable. Will there be a repeat of what took place during the general elections campaign and on elections day in 2002 as happened in Udalthalawinna? We Sri Lankans are a passive lot accepting whatever is dished out by our so-called leaders. Now that the elections have been forced on us, the least we can hope for is that the country is spared the repeat of the horrors of the election violence and the battle for preferential votes by whatever means. Let's fervently hope that at the end of all this, there will still remain a light at the end of the tunnel. Salma
Aboosally
'Letters
to the Editor' should be brief and to the point. Address them to: 'Letters to the Editor, The Sunday Times, P.O.Box 1136, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Or e-mail to editor@sundaytimes.wnl.lk or features@sundaytimes.wnl.lk Please note that letters cannot be acknowledged or returned. |
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