Odda and Ends

The Vision
“I have a dream” said Martin Luther King. So did a highly respected businessman in his third generation Colombo 7 abode. This is what he told his fellow walkers during their stroll.

Seated at my dining table was a VVIP. Always of help, I asked him why he had come. Why are they scolding me? asked the VVIP. No, no they are not scolding you.They only scold the Government, said the host.
Ah, beamed the other, that is different, arriverdechi Roma and the dream ended.

Fugitive doctor
Health Minister Nimal Siripala De Silva was on a tour of a hospital in London recently when he had an interesting experience. A doctor working in the ward suddenly ran away from the area when he saw the minister and his delegation approaching. The minister had queried from the hospitals staff who the person was and was told that he was a Sri Lankan doctor working there. On further inquiry it was found that the fleeing doctor had gone to the UK on a Government scholarship to pursue further studies but had failed to return despite signing a bond that makes it mandatory for him to return to the country to serve in a Government hospital, after completing his studies or pay up the amount of the bond.

Head turner in gallery
The presence of a beauty queen-turned politician in the Parliament gallery caused a commotion in Parliament on Thursday with several MPs acting worse than school boys running from chair to chair, cracking jokes, after observing her presence. Their antics got worse when a young UNP backbencher MP was on his feet, much to the amusement of visitors, including children, to the Parliament. A witness to the scene later quipped that if this was the reaction generated when the aspiring legislator was causing sitting in the gallery, her presence in the Chambers might bring all business to a standstill.

Aliens in high places
Amidst the commotion, UNP Kurunegala district MP Dayasiri Jayasekara spoke about a television programme that has fascinated him and of course millions of others – the X Files. Mr.Jayasekera said some of the things happening in the country were stranger than what happens in the X Files. Not surprising given the number of ‘aliens’ in high places.

Sound your siren
Another UNP MP Dr. Jayalath Jayewardene has been in the news in recent days because of him being questioned by the Police. The issue was raised by him, in Parliament and he said there was a threat to his life.
Chief Government Whip Jeyaraj Fernandopulle had a bright idea on how he could raise an alarm if he was under any kind of threat. He could sound a siren, similar to the ones he has distributed to threatened villages, to assist them in case of a terrorist attack.