Letters to the Editor
View(s):Foreign pensioners face many hassles
Eligibility for pension after retirement until death and in the event of death, entitlement for widows and orphans pension for spouse and children are incentives for youths to seek employment in the Government Service.
In the last few years, Government pensioners living in foreign countries are being harassed by the Department of Pensions and undergo many difficulties to draw their pension and use their pension money according to their wishes.
Until 2009, all Sri Lankan Government pensioners were paid by the Divisional Secretaries through their Sri Lankan bank accounts, whether in State Banks or private banks, whether current or savings accounts and even whether individual or joint accounts. Those Sri Lankan Government pensioners who had moved to foreign countries (foreign pensioners), who wanted their pension paid in their country of residence were paid through the Foreign Missions in those countries. Many foreign pensioners opted to continue to draw their pension through their bank accounts in
Sri Lanka and they were allowed to do so.
In 2009, the Department of Pensions centralized payment of foreign pensioners and payments are being paid by the Foreign Pension Unit. With this centralization, foreign pensioners were compelled to open new special individual savings accounts for depositing their pensions in any of two specified State Bank Branches in Colombo and the pension money was deposited in either of these two bank branches. ATM, internet banking and joint account facilities were denied. The pensioners could withdraw money from their bank accounts only when they visited Sri Lanka. Subsequently two more private bank branches were added to this action. Pensioners drawing their pension through the Foreign Missions continued to enjoy that facility.
Later, due to protests, pensioners were allowed to transfer their pension money from their individual special pension savings accounts to any other accounts. This facility is also denied from late 2019.
Pensioners who were drawing their pension through the Foreign Missions were shocked to find that they were not paid their pension from October 2018. It was only in early 2019 that they were told that they would not be paid their pensions through the Foreign Missions in future except in very special cases, that they too should open new special pension savings account in any of the four specified bank branches in Colombo and that their pension would be deposited to these accounts. Though thousands of pensioners whose pensions were stopped in October 2018 had complied with these directions in early 2019, most of them are yet to get their pensions and their 18 months’ arrears.
In mid 2018, the Department of Pensions informed the pensioners that the facility to transfer pension money from their individual special pension savings account to any other bank account, was being stopped and that they could only transfer their money to another individual savings account in any other branch of the same bank or to an individual savings account in a bank in their country of residence. The four bank branches had been forced to implement rigorously the Pensions Department’s directions from late 2019.
As a result many foreign pensioners who had been using their pension money in Sri Lanka itself by transferring to their relations or for social activities, temples, schools etc did not want to undergo the burden of opening another individual savings account in any other branch of the same bank but were compelled to apply for transfer of their pension money to their bank accounts in their country of residence.
Does the Department of Pensions and/or the Government of Sri Lanka not realise that the country would be losing a lot of foreign exchange as a result?
Hundreds of foreign pensioners are not yet paid their pension increases granted by Public Administration Circular 16/2015, Thousands of foreign pensioners are not yet paid their pension increases granted by Public Administration Circular 14/2019.
The Department of Pensions does not attend to or acknowledge receipt of or reply letters written by the foreign pensioners – but appears to be encouraging pensioners or on their behalf, their relatives or friends to visit the Department to solve their individual problems, thus seemingly leaving room for bribery and corruption.
According to the statistics provided by the Department of Pensions, in its website, 9,815 foreign pensioners had been paid their pension in February 2020.
- Sri Lankan Government Pensioner in Canada
Via email
May the MCC be given a respectable burial
With so much being debated in and out of mass media, the Millennium Challenge Corporation proposals have baffled the average citizen, perplexed two governments and engaged the scrutiny of a team of intellectuals.
It was Ikin in his Pageant of World History who compared the ancient world to a ‘melting pot’ but didn’t foresee that the modern world would be the same. Any serious attempt to unravel the ramifications and implications of the MCC and suggest its feasibility or otherwise must engage a successful student of history, both modern and ancient, both Eastern and Western, in addition to the dynamics of current politics together with its major forces and directions.
There have been instances where the MCC has worked smoothly but the vacillating and deeply unpredictable nature of the treatment to some of our Asian neighbours by the seemingly benevolent donor has been, in the aggregate, displaying not only divisive and aggressive form but an invasive propensity mainly due to its own history of its consistent inability to control either rising inventories of military arsenal or its unscrupulous arming of populations of all age groups.
More than all such similar negative characteristics, the behaviour displayed towards our own independent nation in more recent instances as, for example, in its transportation of military arsenal through our sea and airports into a war zone of its own creation, and in which we were never a party of, has severely damaged the scant regard with which it was previously held. By such irritating acts of disrespectful commission its diplomatic stature is unconsciously and invisibly diminished.
To deal with its objectives of alleviating poverty, one would be justified in asking how developing urban transport infrastructure could improve poverty which is concentrated in the rural population! With such incompatibility one is prompted to suspect whether the inclusion of such impossibility as the primary objective has been contemplated to clothe its more incompatible, sinister projections.
However, it is patently clear to every level-headed individual that the problem of land tenure, inventorying state land and regulatory documentation is an entirely parochial and internal concern which has already seen some progress with the inauguration of the ‘Bimsaviya’ programme.
It would require only a blind imbecile to consent to its application and to suffer its subtle and coercive implications! May the MCC be given a respectable burial if it refuses to be cremated and be reborn in another of the six heavens or the seventh.
To quote half a quartrain from Ogden Nash,
“Losing your face is no disgrace,
But losing your poise is final.”
(with due recognition to limitations in
plastic and reconstructive surgery.)
- Dhanu
Via email
Staggered shopping roster with ID card as virtual curfew pass
Lifting the curfew to enable everyone to shop at the same time defeats the purpose of the curfew. This is shown by the overcrowding that happened last Frida, and on Tuesday, at many markets, supermarkets and shops in Colombo: the trading period is simply too short and the target population too large.
The important objective is to keep supermarkets, markets, pharmacies, etc open at regular trading hours, but limit the people allowed on the streets to buy essential goods at any given period. For example, one approach is to divide the population-based either on
(a) the last digit of national ID (which will randomly divide population to 10)
or
(b) the first digit (or 3rd in new ID) which will divide population to say 6 age groups say 2-3-4, 5-6, 7, 8, 9, 0-1.
Allocate slots of say 4-5 hours, two times a week for the different groups of the population separated as above.
This has the advantage of a simple and easy to understand solution that reduces the people on the streets at any given time to manageable levels.
Please solve the overcrowding when the curfew is lifted for short periods. That is effectively a lot worse than no curfew.
- Lankan Citizen
Via email
Hope the law will see what we, the people see
The claim that the tyre that hit ragging victim Pasindu was a bus tyre is an absolute lie. The students who saw what happened will tell you that the tyre was a large tractor tyre used by the rugby team in their training programmes.
The act was intentional, the tyre was obviously taken upstairs long before the students had got inebriated. We hope that the law will see what we, the people see, and give these hooligans the proper punishment for their dastardly deed.
- A. Nihal Perera
Kalubowila, Dehiwela
Sad state of our teledramas
Aiyo, what is happening to our teledramas? Some say this is due to foreign influence. Without blaming others we should try to correct our industry sensibly.
Of the former teledramas we saw Charthurya beat the rest. The natural and convincing acting was outstanding.
Some of the other teledramas too are quite commendable but sadly, in my view, the recent productions are not worth mentioning. We are being entertained by watching them having a cup of tea or their meals.
I implore all directors and artists to improve this situation or we will not be watching teledramas any more.
- Anandi Kulatilleke
Via email