by Dr Upul Wijayawardhana

I continue to be amazed by the parallels in politics in the country of my birth and the country of my residence. But before going in to the latest developments in the field of politics, let me make a clarification regarding a response to my opinion piece “What is in a title?” (The Island, 13 December). My grateful thanks go to Philosophiae Doctor (Canterbrigensis) for the tutorial on degrees (A degree is not a title! The Island, 16 December) from which I learnt a lot, but may I humbly point out a wrong assumption. Though in the said piece it is stated “The learned physician who identified a Ph.D. degree as a title (The Island, 13/12/24) was wrong. The cardiologist had missed the heart of the matter.” What I stated in my piece was that ‘when challenged, among others, by the much respected and vociferous former elections chief, though the entry in the official parliamentary website dropped ‘Dr’ title and there had been a dramatic rewrite of his profile in the much-used people’s encyclopaedia, Wikipedia, he is yet to respond.” Obviously, “What is in a title?” referred to was ‘Dr’, a title, not to the degree PhD!

Much more has surfaced regarding the former speaker since the publication of my piece. He has tendered his resignation, belatedly, from the post of the Speaker which has been accepted by the President; although he had no choice considering the circumstances. The excuse given, as I guessed in my opinion piece, is that he was looking for the documents but could not find them; an excuse nobody bar himself would believe! To make matters worse, he states that there is a likelihood of his obtaining the relevant documentation from the research institute affiliated to Waseda University. Surely, in this era of electronic communication such a feat does not need a gestation period!

As a trade unionist, Ranwala was the president of the State Medical Faculties’ Parents Association and spearheaded the 2018 protests against an attempt by Dr Neville Fernando’s pioneer institute SAITEM (South Asian Institute of Technology and Medicine) to award medical degrees locally. He claimed it was a ‘degree shop’ where a degree could be bought for money! The Sunday Times of 15 December has a photograph of him leading the protests and, more importantly, states that media reports, at the time, referred to him as ‘Prof. Ranwala! ‘Prof. Ranwala, who led the protests against private medical education in Sri Lanka now claims to have obtained a PhD from a private university in Japan! Is this not the height of hypocrisy? How come the JVP/NPP failed to detect these anomalies?

Another minister, who claimed to be a professor, turned out to be a person who had stagnated, for years, as a senior lecturer because he was not able obtain a PhD. He has said he will be submitting his thesis in three months! Perhaps, submission was delayed by all the planning and electioneering over the past few months and now that he has ample free time as a member of parliament, he can complete the thesis and be assured of acceptance as he is in the governing party!

Though some others have got ‘Dr’ titles removed hastily from the parliamentary website, the Minister of Justice has made a complaint to the CID, that parliamentary staff has wrongly called him ‘Dr’ in an attempt to discredit him. This action raises two questions. First, why did he take so long to note that mistake? Second, is it not more prudent to have an internal inquiry, led by the Secretary General of the parliament before contemplating police action.

True, the government is getting some results in some fields but it has lost the shine too soon, just like the Labour government did in the UK; which also came to power with a massive majority like the NPP. This becomes all the more significant as the NPP offered a change in political culture with honest, educated members of parliament but what has happened is just the opposite. It moved far too slowly over the speaker fiasco and the Speaker waited without any explanations, resigning only when he was left with no alternative. Attempts by NPP social media supporters to glorify the Speaker’s resignation as the actions of a transparent government are absurd.

As the saying goes, ‘coming colours no good!

I wish to share with your wide readership how the poor and disabled people are helped in the UK. Before that, on a glowing note, Sri Lanka’s was portrayed in the best possible light through Alexander Armstrong’s recent three-part series on Sri Lanka. On top of this achievement, Sri Lanka has also been recognised as the 5th best country to visit in your lifetime, according to CEOWORLD Magazine’s prestigious rankings for 2024.

The accolade highlights Sri Lanka’s diverse offerings and unique experiences that captivate travellers from around the globe. Sri Lanka continues to bask in the spotlight as one of the world’s top travel destinations, the recognition serves as a testament to the country’s enduring allure and unwavering hospitality.

CEOWORLD Magazine recently unveiled its list of the best countries to visit, providing invaluable insights to help travellers choose their next vacation destination.

The rankings, based on feedback from over 295,000 readers, reflect the highest level of participation in the magazine’s history.

Sri Lanka’s impressive ranking is attributed to its enchanting hill country, which offers a myriad of experiences for travellers of all interests with a total score of 60.53.

The hill country of Sri Lanka offers a wide range of experiences for travellers of all kinds, whether it’s Ayurveda treatment, unforgettable train rides, or visiting a tea plantation.

The country is rich in culture and traditions, with the Poya ritual being the most significant one celebrated at Buddhist temples.

Don’t miss out on the opportunity to enjoy a wholesome Sri Lankan breakfast, dine under the stars, and stay overnight in one of the country’s National Parks.

Additionally, Sri Lanka is a great destination for shopping enthusiasts, who can find gems, batik, tea, handloom fabrics, leather goods, antiques, jewellery, and ceramics,” the CEOWORLD Magazine noted about Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka continues to emerge as one of the world’s best tourist destinations with accolades from various travel guides, travel magazines and travel web sites, including Lonely Planet, Travel Lemming website and Bloomberg website, etc.

Sri Lanka was selected by travel influencers as a top destination in Asia, and It was also given the Emerging Destination award.

It has gained the Travel Lemming readers award among the world’s top destinations by Travelling website some time ago. Also, a website in the UK ranked Sri Lanka as one of the 10 best places to visit.

It was so captivating that my Welsh wife and I got carried away to consider selling up to settle down back in my motherland! After half a century’s life in UK (I lost my Sri Lankan citizenship many decades ago), in reality the novelty would wear off soon.

Sadly, the stark truth is the ever-widening gap between the rich and poor while dragging the middle class down with it, mirroring the situation in India although the latter is on a massive scale! How the super rich, like Ambani had his son’s wedding celebrations lasting some four months attended by celebrity guests and heads of state from around the world! Let me return to the nitty gritty of the topic I wish to focus on, permanently settled in West Wales to enjoy our retirement looking after our menagerie of two ageing horses, remaining two rescued sheep and, of course, our beloved two little dogs, very much part of the family. Although we enjoy a comfortable lifestyle with our NHS and State Pensions, everyone gets GP prescribed medication free unlike in the more affluent England! Mine includes even Paracetamol, Ibuprofen and a host of others though they can be bought over the counter! Since suffering a nasty fall, slipping in the bathroom earlier in the year, I received a Blue Badge supported by GP recommendations which allows me to park in designated Disabled slots for free. Free bus passes to go anywhere in Wales! More disabled get mobility scooters. Blind people receive guide dogs.

Now that the previous Presidents who plundered the country and fled before stashing away the ill-gotten wealth are being taken to task, hats off to the new President for prioritising the basic needs of the poor while taking away the superfluous privileges traditionally granted to Ministers and MPs! In that context, it may well be AKD as he is often affectionately referred to in journals, could help improve the lot of the destitute and disabled (DDs) through a more pragmatic wealth distribution programme! As a practising Buddhist myself, I dare say some of the so-called Buddhist monks enjoying a luxurious lifestyle in Sri Lanka are only interested in asking for more and more donations! In conclusion, my empathy goes beyond the suffering mankind. What about the millions of stray dogs! I wish to pay a glowing tribute to a British vet who left behind her party lifestyle to start a street dog charity in Sri Lanka has revealed how going on a trip with her ex-boyfriend moments after they’d broken up changed her life forever.

Janey Lowes, 32, from Barnard Castle, County Durham, started her animal charity in Sri Lanka, WECare Worldwide, in 2014, after a holiday there inspired her to move to the Indian Ocean island permanently .

Sunil Dharmabandhu
Wales UK

A current diversion that absorbs us is the question of the Speaker of Parliament, who in some way or another, is alleged to have flaunted the prefix of “Doctor,” by mistake or by deceit, and thus compromised the austere position he holds.

Apart from the constantly bemoaned fact, that our Parliament suffers from a deficit of adequately qualified Members, and thus has contributed towards the poor image that it projects, is not quite tenable. There are many outstanding legislators, who, though limited in formal schooling, have excelled, while there are those with stellar academic qualifications, who have dismally failed. However, the current discourse does raise some interesting points.

(1) In this context, during the tenure of the last Parliament, there was a deluge of “doctors”, sprouting much like mushrooms (or toadstools), after a rainstorm. None of them were challenged in like manner as the Speaker is now.

(2) It is the convention that only those who have abbreviations with the letter “D” in their degrees, are strictly entitled to be referred to as “Doctor.” For example, D.Sc (Doctor of Science), Ph.D (Philosophy), D.Litt (Letters), or D.D (Divinity). “Diplomas” do not qualify.

Of course, there are limits to literal interpretation. For example, there are many “Bachelors of Science and Arts”, who are married. Also, why “bachelors” only, and no “spinsters”?

(3) In the field of Medicine, it is only those with an M.D, who are strictly entitled to reference as “Doctor”. The MBBS (Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery) and even an FRCS (Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons), are properly excluded. Those old enough would recall that the Viennese specialists who had volunteered for service here, rigidly observed this. Consequently, the highly qualified ENT Surgeon, was merely “Mr Grillmayr.” Mere titles do not necessarily indicate competence.

In our Parliament, they are all “Honourables” and even some “Venerables,” who are decidedly not so. Recent disclosures have shown that even in the diplomatic service, some of our representatives have been anything but “Excellent.”

(4) It could be argued that the word “Doctor” is justifiably used as the description of their vocation as “healing sick patients.” This would be problematic, as it implies equivalence with “Plumber, Mason, Carpenter or Electrician.” One notices that of late, those in their respective professions, are referred to as “Engineer” or ‘Architect’ … so and so.

According to the dictionary, when used as a verb, “To doctor” means “to heal or treat the sick”, but also less respectably, “to patch up, falsify, adulterate or even to castrate!”

In order perhaps to overcome institutional inequalities, UN agencies customarily avoid using such academic titles by their staff.

(5) By the way, there also seem to be several “Professors,” in the ranks of Parliament. Is it not logical to also examine what they do actually “profess”, and their institutional details?

It seems an anomaly that “The Speaker” is one who speaks the least in Parliament. But this will sadly not authorise him to remain so in the present instance. The stakes are simply too high to be ignored.

Dr. Upatissa. Pethiyagoda