Letters to the Editor

Crack down on those errant drivers
Traffic offences are increasing rapidly and often police are mere spectators when threewheel and private bus drivers blatantly violate traffic laws. Last month, when I was coming from Galle to Colombo, I observed a speeding private bus overtaking vehicles from the left and driving on the grass tracks at Ambalangoda, unchecked by traffic policemen. Even at the Narahenpitiya-Nawala Road traffic lights, one could observe traffic policemen just looking the other way when traffic laws were being violated.

No amount of lectures, demonstrations or public relations courses can help. It is the lack of supervision by senior officers that has caused this lethargic attitude and indifference. Police academies will serve no purpose if the police officers on the road do not assert and enforce the law without fear or favour.

Detection of crime or vice is of no use if the Police Inspectorate fails to get involved in prosecutions in the courts of law. An unsuccessful prosecution in a court of law will create a lack of public confidence. There are several other reasons for the poor conduct of some police officers.

Several officers own threewheel vehicles and buses, not in their name, but in the name of their spouses or parents. So when a traffic policeman books an errant driver, these vehicle-owning officers intervene. Some politicians also own threewheelers and buses and they too interfere when their drivers are booked. Thus these drivers commit offences blatantly as they know they will escape punishment.

The Police Department must counteract this by getting all officers to declare their assets and those of their spouses and immediate family members. Officers using their uniforms to conduct business must be discouraged. The time is right for the government to wake up and study the causes for such crime and take necessary measures to rectify this situation.

Spare the cart bull this Avurudu
In a few days time, everyone will joyfully wend their way home to their villages, laden with gifts for their families. The festivities will begin for everyone and Avurudu games will be held everywhere. The older women will enter coconut scraping or cadjan weaving competitions while the young girls in all their finery will take part in the Rupa Rajini contest, or head for the swings. The young men will attempt to climb the greasy pole or participate in other contests.

But does anyone spare a thought for the hard working cart bull? These are the worst days of the year for this animal. The cart bull has to run in the hackery (tirikkale) race. He is tortured to run faster and faster. Amidst our enjoyment, let these animals graze in peace and give them a holiday too for a really peaceful New Year.

We don't need election monitors
Inviting foreign observers to monitor our elections is a shameful admission of the corrupt electoral system prevalent in our country. The presence of election monitors has no tangible effect on the conduct of the elections because they cannot stop election violence, vote rigging, thuggery, misuse of government vehicles and other malpractice.

The election monitors are mere spectators. After watching the proceedings they submit a report which is an anticlimax. Nobody reads this report. These imported observers are a burden on the taxpayer. They are wined, dined and hosted in posh hotels. As expected, these foreigners do not bite the hand that fed them. Without any fuss, they write a clean report and vanish only to appear once again as observers at the next election.

Election monitoring mania hits a few over-zealous civic-conscious locals, too. They run around the country during election time collecting statistics on election violence and vote rigging and they publish reports based on these data. In other countries, too, there is violence during election time but people don't make a song and dance about it and make money, like some NGOs in Sri Lanka.

Stopping election violence and fraud is a simple problem with a simple remedy. The first thing to do is strengthen the hand of the forces especially the police. Enforce the law strictly and give correct guidance and courageous leadership. Arrest and remand any person who violates the laws regardless of his position, status or size of bank balance. When such action is taken, violence will gradually fade away. Then there will be no need for monitors and monitoring committees and self-help NGOs during election time.

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