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to the Editor |
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Cheats win as
invigilators look away The million
dollar questions are: Where are the invigilators and what are they
doing? In certain exam halls the MCQs are answered in groups by the cleverer boys and the answers shared. Some boys are forced into participation under threat of assault. In the case of the "copy cats" there is little or no correlation in their MCQ marks and their long answers. In the MCQ they average around 80% and in the long answers 20%. Any examiner will confirm this. Mr. Commissioner, we do not grudge a boy obtaining a pass in an exam. The A/L, however, is very, very competitive. Cheating at the exam, therefore, is grossly unfair by those who follow exam rules, do not copy and also do not take calculators with them. It is the general belief that every year at least 50-60 good students get played out in the entry to the much sought after faculties by examination cheats. This is not only unfair and wrong but also discriminates against merit. Can this phenomena
also explain the higher number of boys, as against girls, gaining
admission to the faculties which require MCQ testing. Please, Mr.
Commissioner, you owe it not only to the students but also to Sri
Lankan society to get your invigilators to be vigilant and put an
end to this low, dirty and deplorable practice.
The drug came in a well-sealed, airtight single-dose plastic container, volume 5 cc. This drug is used as an infiltration anaesthetic for all minor surgical procedure as well as for cataract surgery. It was being retailed at around Rs. 21- per 5 cc vial by Hemas Pharmaceuticals. As of January this year, the new agents have withdrawn this particular drug in this packaging. Xylocaine 2% Astra is now being brought in a 10 cc container which is being retailed at Rs. 87. It is accepted market procedure to reduce the price proportionately when the volume of a pack is increased. Hence, I believe a 100% or more profit is being made. 10 cc of the anaesthetic is hardly ever used and as such the remnant has to be discarded. The patient obviously has to pay for the full 10 cc. I was told that Sri Lankan anaesthetists had demanded this particular volume in the particular packing. This does not appear to be so. The 5 cc pack which is much cheaper and which is still being used by Australian surgeons and anaesthetists is no longer brought in. I cannot understand
the logic behind this whole exercise except a profit motive.
The main road has heavy traffic and pedestrians find it difficult to cross the road for a long while. There is always
the danger of accidents. EPF and annual
statements Members who have left employment prematurely are unable to obtain these funds and have to wait perhaps 10 to 20 years until he/she reaches 55 years. A member cannot
even ascertain whether the funds are safe. Therefore, it would be
beneficial if it is made mandatory for the EPF to send annual statements
to all members. Teach them to
say it right An English pronunciation dictionary is a must for a teacher. It provides essential information that is not available in a general dictionary such as the pronunciation of proper names, all inflected forms of each word and a larger number of variant pronunciations. The word 'flew' was pronounced as /fli:v/instead of /flu:/. Some of the words that go with the above pattern should be pronounced with an/u:/sound, as in 'coo'/ku:/, at the end. Here are some
examples: A rare policeman
and gentleman He helps the old women, children and those visiting the hospital, with care and concern. On the days he's not around, I see a difference. He is an example to the young officers who man points like statues. Meanwhile, I
have seen the name board "Street Children and Women" close
to the Ayurveda Hospital. Wouldn't it be better for people with
good intentions not to brand these children. It should be re-named
"Home for Children and Women in Need" to help them retain
their dignity
This also indicates that there are only a handful of officers in re-employment, possibly between 200-300 in the whole country. officers are re-employed on the recommendation of the head of department and after Cabinet approval, only due to an acute dearth of staff. Pensions are paid to officers who have served the department for 35-40 years and no one should forget that this is a fundamental right of every citizen. Freezing the pension is a violation of fundamental rights. These officers
who are re-employed on contract basis have served the government
for a long period. They have much experience and ability. They seek
re-employment to ease their financial problems and meet responsibilities
towards family and children. Therefore, the
Prime Minister, Minister of Public administration and Minister of
Justice should take action to reverse this Cabinet decision.
King Asela reigned as the sovereign of this nation for a decade (155 BC to 145 BC) after having driven away Sena and Guttika, the first two invaders from India whose reign in Raja Rata was for 22 years as recorded in the Mahavamsa. In 145 BC, invading Tamil forces from India led by Elara defeated King Asela and the country was divided for the second time with the invaders capturing Raja Rata. The Sinhalese retreated to the South and established their kingdom in Mahagama, where Kakavannatissa (Kavantissa) was designated as their king. With the demise of King Kavantissa, his younger son Saddhatissa was crowned king. The elder son Dutthagamani (Dutugemunu) declared war against his younger brother. The Sinhalese would have perished fighting each other if the two brothers had not united to fight the common enemy, the invaders from India. It was only because of this unity that they succeeded in defeating Elara, the Tamil invader who had by then ruled the Raja Rata for 44 years. The unity and territorial integrity of our nation that was re-established as a result in 101 BC continued uninterrupted for 58 years until Tamil invaders defeated King Vettagamani (Walagambahu) in 43 BC. Walagambahu who retreated to the South from Raja Rata regrouped his forces and succeeded in defeating the Tamil invaders 14 years later to re-establish a vibrant unitary Sinhalese nation that survived for 462 years with no recorded invasions by foreign usurpers. The tanks and irrigation works constructed during this period of stability bear ample testimony to the ability of a united Sinhalese Buddhist civilization to achieve prosperity. King Mahasena (334 AD to 362 AD) whose reign comes within this period was the architect of some of the most magnificent ancient irrigation works that even modern technology of today will find difficult to match. The next invasion that took place in 433 AD resulted in Raja Rata being ruled by the Tamils for 27 years. Another great king of the Sinhala Buddhist hydraulic civilization, Dhatusena (460 AD to 478 AD) re-established a unitary Sinhalese nation by successfully defeating the Tamil invaders. However, King Dhatusena was killed by one of his own sons, Kassapa, who was hungry for power. The majority of the Sinhala Buddhist populace did not condone this act of patricide of a popular king and rallied round Moggallana, another son of King Dhatusena. The Sinhalese were once more deeply divided and fighting each other. Kassapa's reign (478 AD to 496 AD) was from the fortress city of Sigiriya. He lived in constant fear of his brother's army. He was deposed 12 years later and the Sinhalese people in 496 AD crowned Moggallana King. United under one sovereign, the country marched towards prosperity during the 17 years of Moggallana's reign. The reign of Sinhalese kings in the next five centuries saw stability as well as instability depending on the unity in the royal house and the ability of the monarch to unite his subjects not only for the purpose of defending the nation but also for the purpose of achieving prosperity. During the tail end of this period, the Sinhalese were deeply divided and were nearly annihilated by the invading forces from the Cola Empire of India. It was during this gloomy period that the nation was to see the emergence of a powerful prince by the name of Kitti. Not only was he able to unite the Sinhalese and give them the much needed leadership, he was also able to defeat a formidable enemy and drive them out of the country. The Colas would have succeeded in destroying the Sinhalese race, had it not been for Prince Kitti who was later crowned as King Vijayabahu I (1059 AD to 1114 AD). A united Sinhala nation marched once more towards prosperity for 55 years under the inspiring leadership of this powerful monarch. It is of interest to note that the flag of the Cola invaders had a similar tiger emblem as to what is found in the LTTE flag. After the demise of Vijayabahu, there was disunity in the royal house once more with his two sons Jayabahu and Vikkramabahu waging war against each other. This division paved the way for invading forces from India to capitalize and occupy a part of our country. Gajabahu who ascended the throne in 1137 AD after Vikkramabahu drove out the invaders and ruled a unitary nation for 22 years. The unity that prevailed during his successor Parakkramabahu I's (1153 AD to 1186 AD) reign of 33 years saw a prosperous hydraulic civilization perhaps at the peak of its efficiency. This is another example of a united Sinhalese Buddhist nation achieving prosperity under the exemplary leadership of a powerful monarch. After the demise of Parakkramabahu I, the Sinhalese were sans a dynamic leadership for many years except perhaps during the nine-year reign of Nissankamalla (1187 AD to 1196 AD). Thus unable to defend their hydraulic civilization in the Raja Rata from forces that constantly invaded this country from India, the Sinhalese civilization retreated to the interior regions of the country. The Mahavamsa does not record the existence of a charismatic Sinhalese leader until the emergence of Parakkramabahu II who ascended the throne in 1236 AD to re-establish Sinhalese unity. His reign of 35 years was a success for no other reason than the fact that the Sinhalese were once more united and poised to defend the country from invading foreign forces. The twenty-year reign Bhuvanekabahu V (1360 AD to 1391 AD) and more so the fifty two-year reign of Parakkramabahu VI (1410 AD to 1468 AD) also succeeded in ushering prosperity to our nation because of the unity that existed among the Sinhalese people and their leaders. However, the disunity in the Sinhalese leadership around 1542 AD resulted in the division of the country to three kingdoms of Kotte, Sitavaka and Kandy under the reign of Bhuvanekabahu VII (1521 AD to 1550 AD), Mayadhanu (1521 AD to 1581 AD) and Viravikkama (1542 AD to 1587 AD) respectively. Dharmapala (1550 AD to 1597 AD), the feeble successor of Bhuvanekabahu VII who had no support from his Sinhalese subjects even went to the extent of adopting Christianity to maintain his position as king with Portuguese help. When he died, in his will he left his kingdom to the king of Portugal. Thus the Portuguese solemnly took possession of the maritime provinces in the name of their sovereign and consolidated their hold on a part of this country with some legitimacy making use of Sinhalese disunity. The seeds of disunity had spread from the royal house to the Sinhala chieftains, namely the Adikars and Dissavas at the time of the demise of the last Sinhalese King Narindasiha. Though a strong party of chieftains at court supported the claims of Unambuva, a son of Narindasiha by a concubine, others opposed his claims. He therefore voluntarily renounced the throne thus paving the way for the foreign queen's younger brother, a prince from Madhura to be crowned king. He ascended the throne as Sirivijayarajasiha (1739 AD) bringing to an end a Sinhalese monarchy that existed for over two thousand years. The power of Sinhalese unity even sans a true Sinhalese king was exhibited when the Sinhalese chieftains rallied round their last king Sri Wickreme Rajasinha in 1803 to defeat a British expeditionary force that entered Kandy. The British who hated the indomitable national spirit of the Sinhalese not only destroyed their leadership but also cultivated a new leadership that was subservient to them. This new Sinhalese leadership tried in later years to become more British than the British themselves. These leaders had little or no regard for Sinhalese customs and traditions. By the time the British decided to grant independence to this country, they had groomed their successors to think and act as they did. The British had introduced to their successors a Westminster form of government perhaps well aware that a united Sinhalese race would spell disaster to future British or western dominance of this nation. We have therefore today, a Westminster form of government that our own political leaders have tinkered with, which has contributed towards further dividing the Sinhalese race. For the sake of political power, our Sinhalese political leaders are presently poised to barter away the just rights of the indigenous Sinhalese population for an illusionary peace brokered by a western nation that has vested interests in this country. One wonders if the political leaders of our country have ever made an effort to study history and learn from our past mistakes. If the indigenous Sinhalese of this country are to be saved from extinction in the near future, the love-hate or maybe the hate-hate relationship as some prefer to call it, which exists between the President and the Prime Minister, must end forthwith. Then and only then will the Sinhalese unite for the purpose of fighting for their very survival. These two who are the leaders of the two main political parties of this country must realize that they belong to one of the most ancient races of the world that has a recorded history of over two thousand years that no other nation can match. They must unite without fighting each other to fight those enemies who are poised to destroy a civilization that our ancestors have protected and preserved for us with their blood, sweat, tears and toil. The writer is Hony. Treasurer, National Joint Committee. 'Letters
to the Editor' should be brief and to the point. |
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