News
SJB accuses govt of keeping university academics in the dark when preparing National Defence University Bill
By Saman Indrajith
The SJB yesterday alleged that the government had kept the university academics in the dark when preparing the draft of the General Sir John Kotelawala National Defence University Bill.
Addressing the media at the Opposition Leader’s office in Colombo, Chief Opposition Whip and SJB Kandy District MP Lakshman Kiriella said: “There are around 4,000 university teachers in this country. None of them has been consulted by the government when drafting the KDU Bill. This is outrageous. The university teachers should have been consulted first. This bill has been prepared by the Defence Ministry officials. None of the academics have been informed or asked for their opinion in this matter.”
Kiriella said that if the proposed draft bill was passed the KDU would become a fee-levying university and it could open its branches countrywide. That would be the privatisation of university education. It would create a network of private universities countrywide.
“At present, the state universities are under the University Grants Commission. The proposed bill is planning to set up a similar mechanism to manage private universities.”
MP Kiriella said that apart from the privatisation, the higher education sector faced the threat of militarisation. “We see nothing wrong with the KDU training and providing education for the military personnel. In other countries, there are similar colleges which offer courses for the defence forces. They could train and educate individuals to become military doctors, lawyers and administrators. But the institute proposed by the controversial bill is different. It offers 15 to 20 courses which would pass out graduates for the jobs in the civil sector. That is totally against the original concept of the KDU. The UGC the decision makers are PhD holders. The KDU draft bill proposes a management committee for the same purpose. More than 80 percent of that committee are military personnel. Our question is whether the army officers have intellectual or academic qualifications to run universities”.
Asked to comment on remarks made by government ministers that the draft bill was a product of the previous government, the chief opposition whip said, “That is a lie. As far as I know the defence ministry was in the process of making such a draft but we did not bring it to Parliament.”
Asked whether the SJB was against amending the Universities Act of 1997 to suit the present-day needs, MP Kiriella said: :We are not against amending the existing universities act. We know that some of the provisions are obsolete and out of date. But when amending an act of parliament a government cannot do it according to its whims and fancies. It has to be discussed with all stakeholders. During our government we set up a parliament oversight committee system to create forums for such discussions. This government has done away with them. When drafting a bill affecting the universities, the government should discuss it with at least the university teachers. The process of drafting the KDU bill was wrong. It was made by the Defence Ministry and then sent to the Cabinet, which had it presented to Parliament. It should have been discussed with university teachers and their opinions should have been considered on the matter.”
Former Chairman of the Weligama Urban Council Rehan Jayawickrama also addressed the press.
By Priyan de Silva
The Election Commission (ECSL) has opposed a move by the government to appoint representatives of the Chairpersons of the Regional Development Committee to monitor local government institutions.
ECSL Chairman Nimal G. Punchihewa told The Island that the government had informed the ECSL of its plan to appoint representatives of the Chairpersons of the Regional Development Committee to monitor the local government bodies and the ECSL had decided to write to the Ministry of Local Government opposing the move, he said. A Chairman of a regional development committee ESD a representative of a particular political party and it would be unfair by other parties for such appointments to be made, the EC Chairman said.
Punchihewa said that the administration of local government institutions could be done through Municipal Commissioners and Divisional Secretaries.Many political parties had complained against the government move, he said.
By Saman Indrajith
The JVP would file a fresh application before the Supreme Court against the government for not holding the local council polls, JVP MP Vijitha Herath said yesterday.Addressing the media at the party headquarters in Pelawatte, Herath said that his party had ascertained fresh information by invoking the Right to Information Act about the funds needed for the holding of the elections and his party would file another fundamental rights case against those responsible for conducting elections.
“The LG polls were to be held on 09 March. They were postponed until 25 April, and later they were put off indefinitely. The President appoints Governors to the provinces and the local councils are under them. Now, he says no party commands the support of 50 percent of voters.
Is this reason why he is not holding elections? His claim that there are no funds for elections is not acceptable. The Election Commission (EC) has, in a letter to the Secretary to the Ministry of Finance, asked for Rs 1,100 million in installments for conducting local government elections. The Secretary to the Ministry of Finance, on 07 March, informed
the EC that the latter’s request had been referred to the Minister of Finance on the same day. But so far the money has not been released. As per a report released by the Treasury, the government revenue was Rs 177,900 million in January this year alone. Of that amount, Rs 156,760 was allocated to government institutions. The Treasury has Rs 21,410 million. In February, the government revenue was at Rs. 271,750 million and of that Rs. 208,620 million was spent. The balance was Rs 63,130 million. In January and February, the Treasury had Rs 84,270 million. These figures have been officially confirmed by a Deputy Treasury Secretary. The EC is seeking only Rs 2,460 million for elections. So, the claim that there is no money for elections is false as per official records. We will submit this information to the Supreme Court when we file a fresh application. We will prove that the government has lied to people,” Herath said.
SJB mayoral candidate for Colombo Municipal Council Mujibur Rahuman alleges that President Ranil Wickremeisnghe has violated election laws by appointing UNP’s mayoral candidate Rosy Senanayake as the Presidential Advisor on Local Government.
Participating in a talk show hosted by a private TV channel, Rahuman said that Senanayake was a candidate for the delayed local government polls. “She has submitted nominations for the Colombo Municipal Council from the UNP list. It is illegal to appoint a candidate to such a post pending an election. The local council polls have not yet been cancelled and cases pertaining to the holding of elections are in progress,” he said, adding that of all the posts the local government candidate had been given the post of Presidential Advisor on Local Governance.
“More than three months have lapsed since Senanayake stepped down from the Colombo Mayor post, but she is still occupying the Mayor’s Residence. The President says that he is implementing the system change demanded by people. The change he is actually doing is giving appointments to his cronies. Is it the change the people expected,” Rahuman queried.
EC opposes govt. move to appointment its henchmen to monitor local councils
JVP says govt. has enough funds for elections
Rosy’s appointment violative of election laws – Mujibur
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