Letters to the Editor

Give a powerful mandate for peace and good governance
The Supreme Court has ruled that the presidential election should be held this year. Some legal luminaries, including those in the Attorney General's Department, academics, Cabinet Ministers including the Constitutional Affairs Minister and other politicians had opined that the presidential election could not constitutionally be held this year and should be held in 2006. They have been proved wrong by the Supreme Court ruling which upheld the stand taken by the Elections Commissioner.

The President sought the opinion of the Supreme Court on the issue and if a ruling was given, I believe, it would not have been binding. But the decision delivered by the SC in the case filed by the JHU is binding.
However, it was nice to hear government spokesmen, ministers and deputy ministers, who earlier boasted that no presidential election would be held this year, changing their tune to say that they expected the poll to be held this year and that they rejoiced over the decision — a case of accepting reality with good grace.

The presidential poll to be held this year is vital to the country as it will be the parliamentary election that is to follow. The candidates coming forward should steer clearly away from racial, communal, religious, caste and regional differences and should not fan religious and racial hatred whilst campaigning for votes. Their supporters should also be prevented from doing so.

The election campaign should not be conducted so as to spread distrust and disunity among the different races. War is no answer to the present impasse. Going all out to appease and pamper the LTTE is also not salutary. A political solution has to be found and the participation and cooperation of all parties towards that end should be secured.

Voters should strengthen their candidate with a powerful mandate so as to ensure that he will not require long jumpers, racists, opportunistic political parties, underworld characters, weapon dealers, drug peddlers and corrupt officials to run the country and enforce good governance. We would otherwise be doomed.

Buddha Bar: No protest?
"Buddha Bar to Launch in Dubai," said a newspaper report. The "Buddha Bar" was the creation of Raymond Visan in Paris. Intending to launch branches in West Asia, Visan says, the name "Buddha Bar stamps our name on the map!"

Do we have an ambassador in France? We do have Buddhist temples. May we ask what the officials sent to manage our affairs and the Buddhist monks were doing, when the scintillating lights of the "Buddha Bar" began to flash across Paris to attract its night visitors?

Will the Hindus tolerate, without protest, a "Vishnu Bar", the Christians a "Jesus Bar", or the Muslims an "Allah Bar"?

Electric power also corrupts
Residents of Bloemendhal Flats, Kotahena, have been experiencing regular power-cuts during the past few weeks, although the CEB has assured them of an uninterrupted power supply.

The CEB has been quick in disconnecting the supply, if bills are in arrears. But when power-cuts occur, it maintains silence. This is unfair by the consumers.
CEB trade unionists agitate for their rights. But there is none to speak for the consumers.

Moreover, the meters installed in the apartments are almost half a century old. They are faulty and damaged. Some are dangling by a single wire from the cut-outs, exposed to the sun and rain. The seals are not intact. The meters of all the residences are located on the ground floor, posing a grave hazard to the ground floor residents.

Unauthorized structures have cropped up overnight, in and around the flat premises. Electricity to these structures is tapped from the supply lines meant for residences. The meter readers overlook this power piracy and harass the innocent consumers. The authorities should take tough action against these corrupt meter readers.

Kadir should have been our prime minister
Thanks to the JRJ Constitution, we, Sri Lankans were lucky to see a true politician among those who generally come to power by the people's vote after giving them many false promises.

The late Lakshman Kadirgamar was elected from the national list in 1994 and held the post of Minister of Foreign Affairs, showing the highest performances in the diplomatic service and being way beyond other ministers until he was slain by the LTTE. The vacuum created by this great leader will not be filled for many years.

Even though he was born a Tamil, he worked for the benefit of the Sinhala Buddhists in a way that we have never experienced from our own Sinhala Buddhist leaders. Unfortunately our people did not understand the value of this great leader who played a vital role for the country in spite of the constant threat to his life from the LTTE.

I feel that if Mr. Kadirgamar had been given the post of prime minister, many a crisis facing this country would have been minimized to a great extent. It also would have proved to the world that there was no communal discrimination in Sri Lanka.

How could the Tigers say they were the sole representatives of the Tamil people if Mr. Kadirgamar had been appointed to the post of premier?
With the death of Mr. Kadirgamar, we have lost our final chance to defeat the LTTE. His name will fall into the list of unsung heroes of our motherland. If there has been a re-birth, I wish he would be re-born in our motherland once again among the good people.
The saying goes that leaders are born and not made.

It was a big drama
I wonder how judgment is made in drama competitions and on what criteria. At the recently concluded Shakespeare drama competition, the judges made a mockery of the whole exercise in the boys’ schools category.

There were a few schools which really deserved to be in the finals. In the name of Shakespeare, how does one judge! My guess is as good as yours!
Malkanthi Fernando
Athurugiriya

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