Trade Union wants polls postponed

A leading education trade union today called the government to postpone the Parliamentary elections as it was clashing with the G.C.E. (A/L) examinations. Mahinda Jayasinghe General Secretary Ceylon Teachers' Services Union said failing which they will call the students, parents and teachers for a protest. ‘We will protest against the rulers who scarify education over elections’, he said. He said that the parliament was dissolved on June 25 while nominations have been fixed from July 6 to 13 and elections being fixed for August 17. He said this resulted in the change in the exam timetable. He said that due to the election the exam starting from August 04 august would be stopped for a week. “Students who sit for exams are depressed because their study plans had to be changed as well as election atmosphere and election campaigns distracted their studies’, he said. “Students develop education for 12 years and works for a timetable in order to get a good result in A/ L’s, but the insensitive politicians consider their gain without looking at the future of the country ,”he said. He clarified President Maithripala , Priminster Ranil Wikramasinghe , education Minister Akila Viraj Kariyawasam as well as both examination and election commissioners are responsible for changing examination schedule by having elections during this time. Mr Jayasinghe explained that they had requested the President , Prime Minster , Education minister and Ministry as well as both Election and Examination commissioners in June 04 to change the election date scheduled August 17 in order to stop the election taking place in between examinations .