Opinion

Resignations without giving reasons

Published

4 years ago

2021/09/11

We are going through tumultuous times, indeed. The COVID pandemic is the main challenge facing the nation as much as it is to the entire world. The economy is on the verge of bankruptcy, aggravated by the pandemic.

As far as the medical emergency is concerned, advice of the experts in the field, which we are not short of, is indispensable. In fact many countries have entrusted the task of planning the control strategy entirely to the medical and public health professionals. Other government agencies are only responsible for implementing such plans. Likewise, in Sri Lanka, many committees and task forces have been appointed to formulate policies with regard to control measures for the pandemic. Many experts have been deliberating various policy decisions ever since the pandemic began. Unfortunately, we find that in implementing whatever such decisions taken behind closed doors, there are obvious discrepancies. This has been mostly seen in the way the accepted protocol in the rollout of the vaccines has been altered from time to time, to suit unknown beneficiaries. The imposition of restriction of movements, like lockdowns, too have been on dubious grounds and appear to be done with much reluctance. The armed forces appear to have been given an inappropriately prominent role in the control measures. The latest such irregularity is the decision to carry out vaccination of the over 20 age group in Hambantota with a much sought-after brand of vaccine that it is claimed should have been reserved for school- children. Known political affiliations of the area, local politicians appearing to take credit and the A rmy and youth organisations carrying it out with no involvement of the health officials gave the impression that the whole exercise was politically motivated. The Health Ministry officials failed to give a valid explanation as to the process confirming suspicions people had all along.

It is against this background that two eminent medical specialists, one of them the esteemed physician spearheading the curative aspects, resigned from the main COVID control task force. The medical professionals concerned were aware from the very beginning that these and other respected experts in the task forces were unhappy about the way their advice was ignored by the decision-makers. They have indicated their grievances at various discussions in the medical forums about the pandemic. It is generally accepted that we may have so far failed to control the epidemic adequately resulting in avoidable deaths due to these irregularities.

These are the latest in a series of resignations from various committees and task forces dealing with the pandemic. They include leading experts in clinical medicine, public health, and laboratory services like virologists. The resignations cause vacancies which cannot be filled easily and could seriously hamper the pandemic control efforts. If this unhealthy state of affairs is to be rectified, the general public and the civil society activists should be kept informed so that there will be some compulsion on the decision-makers to take corrective action. Otherwise the narrative of the political masters that all decisions are taken strictly according to expert advice goes unchallenged. General assumption that nothing can change the behaviour of those in power is to accept defeat.

Despite much criticism of the honesty of the public servants, we have had a few honourable men and women over the years who have been brave enough to resign their posts when they are unhappy with what goes on in their offices beyond their control, due mostly to political interference. A few that come to my mind in the recent years include a chairperson of the Board of Investments and some other chairmen of state corporations and authorities.

However, it is disappointing to note that in almost all these instances the officers concerned have not been confident enough to give the reasons for resignation, instead just quoting “personal reasons”. Perhaps in order not to embarrass the political masters, they prefer to keep the reasons to themselves thus washing their hands off any controversy. It may also be due to their genuine fears about possible repercussions as many of them remain government employees and such retaliation is known to occur. This aspect of course cannot be taken lightly. Still in the event of any retaliation no doubt all professional organis ations will unite to oppose any such moves. It is encouraging to note that people are ready to challenge all that is undemocratic and irregular done by the authorities.

Yet by keeping the public in the dark about the various problems that do not give them the opportunity to do an honest job of work, they are denying the chance to correct the situation by identifying what went wrong. The whole purpose of such resignations is lost if they are not brave enough to speak out the truth. Such silence would encourage the wrongdoers to gladly continue with their work without any hindrance as their questionable actions remain only as speculation without any confirmation of allegations with first hand information. All professionals and others who know the true facts but chose to remain silent may be considered silent accomplices to wrongdoing. Many commentators in the public media have made even disparaging remarks about this failure, at times giving incorrect interpretations as well.

Hence when responsible officers undertake a task of national importance, it is their public duty to divulge any obstacles that interfere with their functioning leading to their resignation. They can at least release their letters of resignation to the press. Quietly excusing themselves out of an unhappy situation and allowing the harmful state of affairs to continue cannot be condoned.

Dr. Sarath Gamini De Silva

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Opinion

Missing 52%: Why Women are absent from Pettah’s business landscape

Published

6 hours ago

2026/02/23

Thilina Walpola

Pettah

Walking through Pettah market in Colombo, I have noticed something both obvious and troubling. Shop after shop sells bags, shoes, electronics, even sarees, and yet all shops are owned and run by men. Even businesses catering exclusively to women, like jewelry stores and bridal boutiques, have men behind the counter. This is not just my observation but it’s a reality where most Sri Lankans have observed as normal. What makes this observation more important is when we examine the demographics where women population constitute approximately 52% of Sri Lanka’s population, but their representation as business owners remains significantly low. According to the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor 2023 report, Sri Lanka’s Total Early Stage Entrepreneurial Activity rate for women is just 8.2%, compared to 14.7% for men.

Despite of being the majority, women are clearly underrepresented in the entrepreneurial aspect. This mismatch between population size and economic participation create a question that why aren’t more women starting ventures? The answer is not about capability or intelligence. Rather, it’s deeply in social and cultural barriers that have been shaping women’s mindsets for generations. From childhood, many Sri Lankan girls are raised to believe that their primary role is as homemakers.

In families, schools, and even universities, the message has been same or slightly different, woman’s success is measured by how well she manages a household, not by her ability to generate income or lead a business. Financial independence is rarely taught as essential for women the way it has been for men. Over time, this messaging gets internalised. Many women grew up without ever being encouraged to think seriously about ownership, leadership, or earning their own money. These cultural influences eventually manifest as psychological barriers as well.

Years of conditioning have led many skilled women to develop what researchers call “imposter syndrome”, a persistent fear of failure and feel that they don’t deserve success kind of feeling. Even when they have the right skills and resources, self-doubt holds them back. They question whether they can run a business independently or not. Whether they will be taken seriously, whether they are making the right choice. This does not mean that women should leave their families or reject traditional roles. But lack of thinking in a confident way and make bold decisions has real consequences. Many talented women either never start a business or limit themselves to small, informal ventures that barely survive. This is not about men versus women. It’s about the economic cost of underutilising 52% of the population. If our country is genuinely serious about sustainable growth. we must build an inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystem through confidence building programs, better finance access to women, and a long term societal mindset shift. Until a young girl walking through Pettah can see herself as a future shop owner rather than just a customer, we will continue to waste our country’s greatest untapped resource.

Harinivasini Hariharasarma
Department of Entrepreneurship
University of Sri Jayewardenepura

Opinion

Molten Salt Reactors

Published

6 hours ago

2026/02/23

Thilina Walpola

Some essential points made to indicate its future in Power Generation

The hard facts are that:

1) Coal supplies cannot last for more than 70- 100 years more at most, with the price rising as demand exceeds supply.

2) Reactor grade Uranium is in short supply, also with the price rising. The cost is comparable to burning platinum as a fuel.

3) 440 standard Uranium reactors around the world are 25-30 years old – coming to the end of their working life and need to be replaced.

4) Climate Change is increasingly making itself felt and forecasts can only be for continuing deterioration due to existing levels of CO2 being continuously added to the atmosphere. It is important to mention the more serious problems associated with the release of methane gases – a more harmful gas than CO2 – arising from several sources.

5) Air pollution (ash, chemicals, etc.) of the atmosphere by coal-fired plants is highly dangerous for human health and should be eliminated for very good health reasons. Pollution created by India travels to Sri Lankans by the NE monsoon causing widespread lung irritations and Chinese pollution travels all around the world and affects everybody.

6) Many (thousands) of new sources of electric power generation need to be built to meet increasing demand. But the waste Plutonium 239 (the Satan Stuff) material has also to be moved around each country by lorry with police escort at each stage, as it is recovered, stored, processed and formed into blocks for long term storage. The problem of security of transport for Plutonium at each stage to prevent theft becomes an impossible nightmare.

The positive strengths to Thorium Power generation are:

1) Thorium is quite abundant on the planet – 100 times more than Uranium 238, therefore supplies will last thousands of years.

2) Cleaning or refining the Thorium is not a difficult process.

3) It is not highly radioactive having a very slow rate of isotope decay. There is little danger from radiation poisoning. It can be safely stored in the open, unaffected by rain. It is not harmful when ingested.

4) The processes involved with power generation are quite different and are a lot less complex.

5) Power units can be quite small, the size of a modern detached house. One of these can be located close to each town, thus eliminating high voltage cross-country transmission lines with their huge power losses (up to 20%).

6) Thorium is ‘fertile’ not fissile: therefore, the energy cycle has to be kick-started by a source of Neutrons, e.g., fissile material, to get it started. It is definitely not as dangerous as Uranium.

7) It is “Fail – Safe”. It has walk-away safety. If the reactor overheats, cooled drain plugs unfreeze and the liquid drains away to storage tanks below. There can be no “Chernobyl/ Fukoshima” type disasters.

8) It is not a pressurized system; it works at atmospheric pressure.

9) As long as reactor temperatures are kept around 600 oC there are little effects of corrosion in the Hastalloy metal tanks, vessels and pipe work. China, it appears, has overcome the corrosion problem at high temperatures.

10) At no stage in the whole chain of operations is there an opportunity for material to be stolen and converted and used as a weapon. The waste products have a half- life of 300 years, not the millions of years for Plutonium.

11) Production of MEDICAL ISOTOPE Bismuth 213 is available to be isolated and used to fight cancer. The nastiest cancers canbe cured with this Bismuth 213 as Targetted Alpha therapy.

12) A hydrogen generation unit can be added.

This information obtained from following YouTube film clips:

1) The Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactor – what Fusion wanted to be…

2) An unbiased look at Molten Salt Reactors

3) LFTR Chemical Processing by Kirk Sorensen

Thorium! The Way Ahead!

Priyantha Hettige

Opinion

Foreign degrees and UGC

Published

6 hours ago

2026/02/23

Thilina Walpola

There are three key issues regarding foreign degrees:

Recognition: Is the awarding university recognized by our UGC?

Authenticity: Is the degree genuine or bogus?

Quality: Is it a standard, credible qualification?

1. The Recognition Issue (UGC Role)

The UGC addresses the first issue. If a foreign university is listed in the Commonwealth Universities Yearbook or the International Handbook of Universities, the UGC issues a letter confirming that the university is recognized. However, it is crucial to understand that a recognized university does not automatically imply that every degree it issues is recognized.

2. The Authenticity Issue (Employer Role)

The second issue rests with the employer. It is the employer’s responsibility to send a copy of the foreign degree to the issuing university to get it authenticated. This is a straightforward verification process.

3. The Quality Assurance Gap

The third issue

—the standard and quality of the degree—has become a matter for no one. The UGC only certifies whether a foreign university is recognized; they do not assess the quality of the degree itself.

This creates a serious loophole. For example:

Does a one-year “top-up” degree meet standard criteria?

Is a degree obtained completely online considered equivalent?

Should we recognize institutions with weak invigilation, allowing students to cheat?

What about curricula that are heavy on “notional hours” but light on functional, practical knowledge?

What if the medium of instruction is English, but the graduates have no functional English proficiency?

Members of the UGC need to seriously rethink this approach. A rubber-stamp certification of a foreign university is insufficient. The current system ignores the need for strict quality assurance. When looking at the origins of some of these foreign institutions (Campuchia, Cambodia, Costa Rica, Sudan..) the intentions behind these “academic” offerings become very clear. Quality assurance is urgently needed. Foreign universities offering substandard degrees can be delisted.

M. A. Kaleel Mohammed
757@gmail.com
( Retired President of a National College of Education)