Sri Lanka It's Happening

May 10, 2005

Last year, after disolving parliament which resulted in vital exams being postponed, the president accused the UNP of neglecting education.

Since her party came to power the president herself holds the ministry of education. Her close confidant was appointed the ministry sectratry. It was this same person who headed the tsunami relief operations. The government had to admit that the post tsunami efforts were a failure.

As for the president holding the ministry of eduction, it is possibly because everyone in her party (numbering 60 odd) had been allocated ministries and deputy ministries and there was no one to fill this post. Regardless of the reason, close attention has made a bad situation worse. In other words neglect was have been far better

For example a few weeks ago one mother commited suicide because she couldn't find a school for her son. School education is supposed to be free, but you have to buy a School principal if you want to your child to get an education. This government promised to change all that but it seems things have only got worse.

Bowing to public pressure (which is unusual for this government), some school principals were sacked. This was another trade mark bungling because the Public Services Commission that has the final say in these matters overruled the ministry and reinstated the same principals into the schools.

At one stage, the government threatened to cancel all admissions and start a fresh. Even though the secratary to the ministry of education was running the tsunami relief campaign the government has still not been able to move out all the refugee camps from schools. Even the schools that have been reopened in the tsunami areas are said to have very low attendence.

It is also worth mentioning that during 87-90 universities in the country were closed for long long period because the JVP then a terrorist organization had infiltrated the universities. Campuses were hotbeds of subversive activities. Now the very same JVP is a part of the unholy alliance that misrules this country.

Posted by raditha at May 10, 2005 8:56 AM