Lest we forget - 5 years on

In a few hours this morning, the convoys of vehicles carrying VVIPs at a huge cost to the State, Diplomats and senior Servicemen will be streaming down the Southern Highway to Matara, for the 5^th Anniversary (they call it celebrations) of the “Victory against Terrorism”. Actually it was a victory in a Civil War where one set of citizens conquered another set of citizens who held a different viewpoint, namely secession from the Center.

We seemed to have missed the plot a little on this, as we keep calling it a war, which in its true sense it is not. It was in fact little different to the JVP uprising, where another set of citizens took up arms against the Center again, and were also cruelly put down, no differently than the former, where atrocities were committed by both sides, and one side wishes to fool us into believing they were always committed by the vanquished. The LTTE uprising against the state was more organized as it was well funded from overseas, and far more organized in scale.

Should we now after 5 years make it a remembrance event for all those who lost their lives in this conflict, giving a pledge as leaders who attend, that they will never let it recur? If the latter is what happens, then there is a greater likelihood of reconciliation and a true end to future possibilities of their recurrence. After all that is what is most important after a war, so that it will NOT happen again.

If we learn anything from the First World War, it is NOT to punish the vanquished to an extent that creates resentment and finally a rebirth of rebellion. We don’t seem to have learned from it, and 5 years on, the resentment HAS not diminished.

The reason for this is that you cannot buy contentment. It must be apparent by deeds. We have done nothing, bar physical and infrastructural improvements to show that the reasons for the conflict in the first place have been neutralized. In that respect, the past 5 years have been an utter failure in diplomacy, both within and without, and the GOSL solely responsible for it.

If one takes the results of the Northern Provincial Council elections, it is apparent from the result, that the overwhelming majority there voted for the party that still espouses separatism, whether we like it or not, and which keeps this light burning, emboldened by the Tamil Diaspora, especially in the Western nations, where for electoral or other reasons, the host nations tolerate a level of insubordination, which if it was done here would definitely be treasonable. It is time the GOSL wakes up to this reality, and NOT be the cause of a future enforced bifurcation. 

I hope this insensitivity can stop, the ruling elite's jingoism, set aside, and a whole country of a multitude of people from different bloodlines live in harmony. Let us turn this into a memorial for those who suffered from all our internal conflicts, and continue to suffer, in a make believe land where today ONLY the sycophants and their patrons benefit at the expense of the rest of the Country.

ONLY then can we truly build a country where this rebellion begat from want will never arise!

GMOA – the ball is now passed on to you – so please rise up to the occasion!

The absolutely DISGRACEFUL behavior on the part of the GMOA(government medical officers association) in interfering in every aspect of medical care, and training MUST STOP now.

As we speak, the Allied Health Sciences students and the IUSF are demonstrating right outside at Temple Trees to obtain some redress. They should be tearing down your temple not that Temple of our leaders!!!

Your attitude in this and many other issues, like the Nurses strike over the prevention of training in Midwifery lay firmly at your doorstep.

You can change this for the betterment of your patients by getting down from your high horse, and realizing what will benefit the patients in the long run.

This country is wasting poor people’s money in training doctors and giving them a good education at the state’s expense, and is one of the handful of countries in the WORLD who give a free education to Medical Students. This education worth around Rs10M now, comes with responsibilities and duties to the people who pay for it. I can only state that the majority of Doctors who come through this system DO NOT fulfill them and many are still part of the GMOA, but there are many who are NOT in the GMOA who have completely shirked their obligation.

The GMOA needs a shock treatment, from the public who they serve. It is only then that they will take into account these objections against their behavior. They have the power to fight the weak bureaucrats in the Health Ministry who are engaged in frauds of one sort or another to further their own nest and have a live and let live attitude that only results in the patient’s rights being trampled upon.

We must go back to basics to realize what the health service is for? It is to serve the General Public who seek their help, pure and simple. These personal agendas that have taken precedence MUST stop now. Let us all join hands to fight the corrupt system that puts patient lives and rights at risk, and show our hypocritical doctors, what the “Hippocratic Oath” is all about.

I have attacked one institution here, and hope they will be able to look inwards and improve their behavior to better serve the community. It is lawyers who I wish to tackle next as another source of public outrage, as they have taken full advantage of the lawless situation to feather their nests. They instead of adding to the productivity of Sri Lanka have stifled progress by their selfish practices.   

The Nurses strike – is it a question of Midwifery?

The people of Sri Lanka were severely inconvenienced in the last few days due to the Nurses strike. When one reads the reasons for the strike, it becomes clear that the opposing views are poles apart, but neither of which make sense and actually it is all about each profession trying desperately to protect their turf in light of normal pressures within society that make all these skills less than indispensible.

Take the Doctors and the main Union the GMOA, who have been the cause of most of the problem in the Sri Lanka health service. Then you have the professional body representing the Specialists in Obstetrics and Gynecology. The SLOGs. Then you have the Midwifery Union, and finally the Nurses who are represented by 3 different unions, with one that has a Buddhist Priest as its head.

It is stated that there are new rules in the Nursing profession that has been enacted that calls for training in Midwifery if a Nurse is to be promoted! Surely if I was a Nurse, I would wish to have this training too, so I will be very versatile. Can anyone rational find fault with that?

The midwife union does not want that so they strike, as their position becomes a little weaker if there are others who can perform their jobs in case they decide to be difficult. Then you have the doctors who don’t want it either, as they pompously believe delivery is part of their profession, and they have permitted midwife’s some leeway, in that task, so why should they allow more nurses the same privilege.

Finally comes the SLOGs, who see it as a threat to their profession as a whole. Hell I was delivered by a Nurse, not a midwife because the doctor could not come on time, so why shouldn’t they have the training, so that they can save lives in case of emergency. The SLOGS said today, that untrained people and student nurses will be trained in midwifery!!! Come on get a life. A student nurse should know about basic midwifery of cutting an umbilical cord in an emergency, when NO doctor or midwife is available.

It is the level of training and the detail that should change depending on the seniority and course that is being taught and practical training required!! So the student nurse MUST have overall knowledge of all areas of Nursing including the basic deliveries, NOT cesareans I agree. Then the Graduate nurses, who have undergone 3 year degrees, may require a more sophisticated midwifery training, even in theatre where Cesareans are performed so they can assist doctors in future.

Midwifes in Sri Lanka are a profession, and they have specific tasks.(pavul saukya seva niladaris) No one is attempting to take their job away  from them, and they MUST be prepared to permit other people, NURSES to obtain this training, so the nurses are able to gain promotion, and go into the next level of their hierarchy.  

The fear of job protection that those with good jobs have is a sign of the times, that their jobs are worthless, and they need to do whatever in their power to prevent even POSSIBLE competition. Actually they should think outside the box and make sure they have courses to keep them updated in their fields to protect themselves from interlopers, and then prevent the dilution of their profession as the best alternative, and NOT prevent people who want to further their knowledge from so doing.

Then we come to the Doctors, a breed on their own who believe they are owed something in the health service of Sri Lanka. The GMOA is NOW IRRELEVANT. They know it and they are attempting to protect their turf in light of this irrelevancy. Nurses are increasingly doing a lot of a Doctors job, as they are AWOL and cannot be found in critical moments. They are busy lining their pockets by getting patients to see them privately. Please remember there are exceptions to this rule, and I salute the Good caring Govt. doctors who are an asset to their profession and serve their patients with duty, and diligence.

It is the GMOA who are digging their own grave by their pomposity and non-inclusive practices. Nurses have paid lip service to them for too long. Many with better education are realizing this canard, and are now taking their profession to new heights. The doctors fear the imminent threat to their status and respect.

What is more daunting is the increasing private sector health service that will soon engulf the numbers in the GMOA. Further with the international demand for nurses as compared with doctors, nurses who go overseas on contracts return NOT JUST WITH A POT OF MONEY, but also with a lot of experience in new technology the doctors don’t have. This is inevitably a threat to them, and they are attempting their utmost to prevent nurses from getting more training which will give them more qualifications, make them more employable and make doctors increasingly irrelevant except in exceptionally difficult cases of diagnosis and treatment.

It is therefore for the Health minister, NOT to be made a hostage of the GMOA, and instead show them the riot act if they cause problems. This is inevitable, and as sure as night follows day. So in the interests of the poor patients in Sri Lanka let us ensure the patient care comes first, and delegate responsibilities accordingly.            

Lakbima Editor – Saman Wagaarachchi confirms our worst fears about Sajith Premadasa

Saman resigns!!

As I mentioned in an earlier blog post that Sajith had gone to Thilanga Sumathipala, to ask him to remove the Lakbima editor, it is now apparent from Mr Wagaarachchi’s statement

https://www.colombotelegraph.com/index.php/resigned-lakbima-editor-believes-mahinda-gota-sajith-and-tiran-want-him-to-go/

Mahinda Rajapaksa, Ghotabaya Rajapaksa, Tiran Alles have in addition to Sajith gone to Thilanga leaving NO option for this resignation to take place.

It is therefore with the blessings of the President that Tiran Alles and his Ceylon Newspaper Group who support both Sajith and his campaign of demolition of the UNP along with his erstwhile mouthpieces, Maithri Guneratne and Shiral Laktileke, have chosen the President’s agenda. It is now a foregone conclusion that the “dichotomy” that I referred to earlier, is proof positive of the involvement at the highest level of support for the Sajith course of action in keeping the UNP firmly in conflict so the opposition to this terrible regime is minimized.

Whether Sajith is party to this or just a pawn in Mahinda’s game is up to Sajith to come clean about. If he does so he will expose his Achilles heel and therefore only admit to his failings when he is prepared to accept that he is unelectable and comes to terms with reality.

In either scenario, his duplicity is exposed and the Govt. game of setting one against the other is confirmed beyond reasonable doubt. It is now up to the people to be informed that a game is being played, where misinformation is fed in the form of news to confuse and confound the people, who are unable to make up their minds, and judge people for who they are, based on rational evaluation of their behavior and character, but be misled by innuendo and canard.

I wish the ex Editor of the paper Lakbima good fortune in his future, and the circulation of Lakbima which was rising as a result of some plain speak will now revert to its loss. Thilanga will have to carry the loss, and be thankful to his President for forcing him to make a loss, but that serves him right to be sleeping with the devil, as in the end only justice will prevail.

Another chapter in the pressure brought on the Media in the era of NO Press Freedom is exposed.           

Lt. Gen. Daya Ratnayaka not fit (mind) – Needs some mental health counseling for his remarks yesterday!

In a brilliant case of SCHADENFREUDE yesterday, at the opening of the New Army Hospital in Narahenpita, the Army Commander took great pleasure in belittling the US Soldier and Veteran and I quote from the daily FT this morning (6^th May 2014 page 2) 

“criticized US policy towards its armed forces and Veterans, saying it compared unfavorably with the way Sri Lanka treats its own war heroes and retired troops.

 “America spends heavily for war but it is sad to see the condition that the US soldiers who have been involved in battles and those who have retired from the service are in.”

How does he know? After all he has obtained training courtesy of the US, and now he wants to suck up to “his pomposity”. Has he heard of the Department of Veteran’s Affairs? When the average US citizen has to buy health insurance, the Veteran and family in the US has access to an incredible array of medical benefits that only he can dream of in Sri Lanka, despite the flashy hospital that was opened. Remember it was a construction with beds, not a hospital equipped with the latest technology. There is a long way to go before that happens.

Just go to the hospital today, and see how many patients it can see, and the quality of the doctors, nurses and support staff to cover a 1000+bed hospital. Whilst the intention of its construction is honorable it will take some time, possibly not with this administration to get it to a standard that we can be proud of given the hype.

The US has a Right to Freedom of Information Act, so we the public has access to all the information we need, and the problems with Vets with PTSD and the psychological problems they have, and which are highlighted in the press. WE HAVE NO such law in Sri Lanka and therefore we have NO information relating to such vets, so we are unable to prove if Daya Ratnayaka is hallucinating or suffering from PTSD!

How many psychologists does the Army have? What are their qualifications? I know psychologists who have minimal training and are let loose on our Armed Forces. Why do we build buildings to open, and not build building blocks of professionals. What the Army needs is NOT hospitals but better quality of doctor and nurse and other healthcare givers. The Kotelawala Defence Academy is also building a state of the art Hospital. Are we planning on invading India? We only have to protect our Island, so their don't fight external wars, so they are a National Guard that are called an Army just so that titles can be conferred! 

If you really want to see an Army go to India just across the pond, and then you will know what they are all about. The whole nine yards. So Daya don't get ahead of yourself, just stay cool, and then you will become a Bank Chairman or a Ambassador when you are put out to grass. I know the Americans took umbrage at your words yesterday and immediately put out a statement, and as I write are in contact with Washington, to know what to do next if anything to display their displeasure. 

I would tell them not to bother, just ignore the rantings of a sycophant in front of his master. He did not know what to say to please the audience, so he made a fool of himself in public. That is punishment enough.   

It is further proof that we don’t have sufficient mental health practitioners to help our vets with these problems, and are suffering in silence. Our soldiers need more than just building houses, and if one just picks up a paper one will read that most of the villages set up for their homes are just falling to rack and ruin, as the Govt. only wants to make a media show and not a real village.

Just go to the first 10 Ranaviru villages that have been set up and just see for yourself how desperate they are for basics, such as roads, water and power! Obviously the Army Commander is living in cloud cuckoo land like all big whigs!    

Just do a program to look into the state of ALL Ranaviru Villages and try and address the complaints of those residents first, without wasting money on hospitals. This will cost much less and use far less resources, and then you will be able at lower cost to be honest in your statements. Ironically the Americans have all those facts but don't want to insult your intelligence and theirs!

I know you will read this, so have the humility to apologize to them in private, and preserve your dignity. 

Why does the Govt. protect and promote known contract killers?

The primary and very public miscreant in the Hambantota fiasco, namely the Mayor of Hambantota (the mere mention of his name should give the ruler a shiver down his spine, but it does not) Eraj Fernando is still at large, as he is given protection for breaking the law, by the highest office of the Country.

This whole farce of saying 4 people have been arrested is not going to absolve traitors from their responsibilities, as in the end the Police will either determine that there is not sufficient evidence to prosecute, or just let the whole thing slide into another case of delayed injustice.

We are simply fed up that ALL those who are accused of carrying out the agenda of the Govt. never have to face the full force of the law for breaking the law with impunity. This whole farce of people being arrested to show that there has been SOME action as a result of the sit-down demonstration at the Hambantota Police Station, against the Police inability to enforce law and order that they are duty bound to protect.

The henchmen drunk to the misdeeds of this increasingly maniacal administration are simply unable to comprehend that there is grievous misuse and abuse of the powers conferred on the executive and therefore on their sycophants who appear to automatically obtain immunity from prosecution.

It is a grave indictment of the Presidency that people who have the confidence of the Executive, be they contract killers or criminals make a mockery of the justice system, where innocent people are taken in for questioning on spurious charges, to frighten them, and guilty enjoy protection.

What is worse is that our international detractors are given the opportunity of further pointing out the unacceptable state of administration in Sri Lanka, and it further belittles the Country in the eyes of our overseas friends and neighbors. It is us who have to defend our Country from these unfair allegations, whilst the Executive gives fuel to the allegations. Let us call a spade a spade and accuse the Executive of “Treachery” against the people of Sri Lanka by deliberately giving safe haven to criminals (especially in the Hambantota District) to operate with impunity at the expense of the General Public who are law abiding and work for the betterment of the Country. Let us accuse these guilty traitors in the open, try them for their crime and punish them for their treachery. We MUST hold those accountable as otherwise there are NO deterrents to treachery!!!!!           

Sri Lanka needs to “Progress not Regress” –The Sajith Premadasa imbroglio!

Leadership must contain a level of patience and cunning, and a remarkable ability to accept character assassination with fortitude, without any of it rubbing off on one, be it for revenge at a later date or to enhance any character flaws one might have, especially when it is laid bare for all to see.

President Mahinda Rajapkse had the nerve to sit it out, especially putting up with the Bandaranayake insults, to finally overcome these hurdles and single mindedly take “fooling the public using the Media to another level”. This has enabled him to act with impunity consigning Sri Lanka into a lawless, Banana Republic, which I never imagined we would be reduced to. It will take a little time for the public to understand this, but by which time, the damage to the Country may become irreparable, and it is the duty of us patriotic citizens to abolish the rationale for the creation of the Frankenstein’s monster, without delay, by abolishing the Executive Presidency. This in the hands of the current incumbent, has reduced it to an absolute dictatorship, using and abusing the powers vested in the incumbent to further tighten the noose on the people, by the abolition of the 17^th Amendment and the installation of the 18^th in its place.

To this cataclysm, comes a clone of the incumbent, in the guise of Sajith Premadasa, but devoid of astute political skills, to further the tenure of the Rajapakses. Therein in lies the dichotomy of the same cell divided into two mutually exclusive parts, that help both survive, where one cannot be sustained without the other.

Sajith Premadasa is NO Mahinda Rajapakse and vice versa, as they are two halves of the same bush, though racial purists would be aghast at the comparison. To a rational observer it would seem that Premadasa is only doing the bidding of MR, whilst pretending to others that it is RW (Ranil) who is doing MR’s bidding.

There was an article in last Tuesday’s Lakbima, by a lawyer named Seneviratne, which exposed the likely basis of Sajith’s survival, and warned the astute observer on the game that he is playing to the detriment of the UNP and the longevity of the MR Presidency, in exposing the canard that his preference of RW as the common candidate is the way to go, really for the long life of MR as Sajith is bound to say one thing and do the complete opposite, like his mentor the current President.

Let us NOT be fooled as this is a game that holds Sri Lanka to ransom for the benefit of lesser mortals, like Sajith and Mahinda, and we MUST NOT allow it.

After the Lakbima article, it was apparent that Sajith is incapable of taking searing criticism. He had, with his sister Dulanjali, gone to Thilanga Sumithipala, and asked that the Editor of the Lakbima be removed! for this mudslinging. If this is so, how will he be able to face character assassination of an extreme kind, should he (god forbid) run as a Presidential candidate? In fact the circulation of Lakbima has gone up, with this tell it to the people, even if it hurts decision.

One thing MUST be exposed, namely, that MR is going to dish the dirt on Sajith, if he is the opponent in a Presidential campaign, that is truly going to sink poor Sajith before he is even able to start the engine, and he must be a fool if he does not know it by now. That must be the reason Seneviratne concludes that he is doing MR’s bidding. I fear Sajith will attempt to harm himself if he is unable to take it.

As if Ranasinghe Premadasa legacy was not enough, he began the downfall of the UNP, and they are still paying the price of that dictatorship. When the UNP tries to get the upper hand on the morality stakes, to permit a person, who is a loner, and completely devoid of inclusionary politics, to take over a party and destroy it further, is tantamount to giving his blessing to a Rajapakse dynasty. In that sense those who advocate Sajith for leadership, have a serious credibility issue of their own to come to terms with. Are they so blind? Or merely playing the same tune?

Let us face it, Sajith’s grass roots popularity is a product of the same MR media misconception, of saying one thing and doing something completely different. After all despite protestations to the contrary, it is Sajith who is continuing his father’s legacy in destroying the party. Seneviratne’s accusation that he is in bed with the devil who ensured that MR won the 2005 Presidential by again fooling the people, and Prabakaran with money, is hard to let slide, when one looks at the mouthpieces that are publicizing his agenda.

I need hardly go into Sajith’s past where artifact and trophy hunting, on top of the disappearance of valuable state property from the Residences during the Premadasa Presidency, will all be resurrected, with witnesses, facts, and incontrovertible evidence, in case Sajith decides to defy his master’s plan.

Stop destroying the UNP, take yourself out of leadership contention, and work together as one team, and not alone like now, to build the Grand Old Party back to its former glory. It is the only alternative to a just society, where the Rule of Law is pivotal, and remember that, only one not soiled by one’s past misdeeds can even attempt the top job, and be happy with lesser positions you can aspire to in a UNP administration, or just leave before you are unceremoniously fired.