Daily News Editorial

Lessons from the pandemic

The Government, understandably, is cautiously optimistic in “re-opening’ the country in its totality, to end the total lockdown effected in the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic. Several Ministers have expressed the hope that the curfew in the Colombo and Gampaha Districts could be lifted by Monday thus enabling unrestricted movement in these districts for the public.

However, health authorities are said to recommend the continuation of the indefinite curfew in these two districts until such time any Covid-19 clusters are totally de-activated. Top Government officials too had reportedly sided with the Health authorities in favour of such a course obviously since it is these two districts that had the largest number of Coronavirus cases.

The Government, understandably, is cautiously optimistic in “re-opening’ the country in its totality, to end the total lockdown effected in the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic. Several Ministers have expressed the hope that the curfew in the Colombo and Gampaha Districts could be lifted by Monday thus enabling unrestricted movement in these districts for the public.

However, health authorities are said to recommend the continuation of the indefinite curfew in these two districts until such time any Covid-19 clusters are totally de-activated. Top Government officials too had reportedly sided with the Health authorities in favour of such a course obviously since it is these two districts that had the largest number of Coronavirus cases.

A second wave, therefore, is always hanging like a Sword of Damocles and the Government cannot be faulted for acting with a degree of circumspection. Perhaps, the likely postponement of the General Elections due to the health climate not being conducive for such an exercise in the absence of a “Green light” by health authorities may also hasten the hands of the Government in coming to a decision concerning the full scale reopening of the country at this stage.

While the entire nation is focused on the Coronavirus and the response of the Government to alleviate the condition, another lurking health threat is upon us which, if no timely action is taken is bound to snowball into another full blown health crisis.

For weeks, there have been warnings from the health authorities and even the Health Minister of a rapid spread of the dengue epidemic which has made its foreboding presence felt with the onset of the monsoon. The National Dengue Prevention Unit has now raised alarm that the dengue mosquito larvae density has reached a monstrous 80 percent in schools, Government departments and construction sites, which have all been lying abandoned for over two months during the curfew period and have naturally provided breeding grounds not only for dengue but also other diseases.

No doubt, the health sector has been stretched to beyond its full capacity to cope with the Coronavirus crisis. But this is no reason to bypass an equally alarming crisis which if allowed to get out of hand could make the Coronavirus pale into insignificance.

While the Coronavirus in this country has claimed only nine lives, dengue, in our experience, counts its fatalities in the hundreds countrywide. Hence, the Health Ministry should get cracking without delay in devising emergency measures to combat the dengue epidemic with the same commitment and resourcefulness its staff displayed in fighting the Coronavirus.

The Colombo Municipal Council can play an important role in this connection. It should embark on a massive clean-up campaign of the City and commence fumigation of all suspected spots harbouring the dengue mosquitoes. All hotels and eating houses in congested areas should be subjected to inspection with emphasis laid on the hygienic conditions in the preparation of food and health standards of their employees. The authorities should take prompt action to ‘smoke out’ all abandoned structures and untenanted buildings while steps should be taken to clean up all polluted canals and waterways dotting Colombo’s landscape.

Thankfully, the Coronavirus has opened the eyes of the citizens to think anew regarding the precautions to be taken to protect themselves health wise, particularly the health guidelines to be adhered to in their interactions with society. Hopefully, these practices will come to stay, leading to the control of many other diseases such as dengue in the future. In that respect the Coronavirus pandemic will have also taught us many lessons leading to healthy lifestyles for all.

The Island Editorial

War heroes and cramped camps

The Navy has been battling a rogue wave of coronavirus. Of about 1,045 Covid-19 cases, more than 578 are naval personnel. The vast majority of them are from the Welisara Navy base. It was first thought that the sailors who rounded up infected drug addicts had caused the spread of the diseases in the camp. But the members of the Army, the Air Force, the police and the Civil Defence Force have also been battling the virus from the front, and there has been no explosive spread of Covid-19 among them. The Army and the Police, in particular, have deployed many more personnel than the Navy to work with the frontline health workers. What went wrong with the SLN?

The sharp increase in the number of Covid-19 infections due to the rapid spread of the disease among the naval personnel led to the extension of lockdowns and curfews, especially in the Western Province, which is the economic hub of the country. It also plunged the country into a state of uncertainty, which caused the general election to be postponed further.

We reported, on Wednesday, that the cramped conditions at the Welisara Navy base might have contributed to the explosive spread of Covid-19, there. The Navy has moved an unspecified number of its personnel from the Welisara base due to congestion. Why has no action been taken, all these years, to develop this vital naval facility?

Political leaders never miss an opportunity to heap praise on the military personnel, whom they call war heroes. The question is why they have not developed the naval bases where some of these war heroes are stationed. The Army has had to accommodate some of the troops in schools as leave has been cancelled for all its members and the physical distancing rule has to be observed in camps.

The situation the armed forces are faced with may be unprecedented, but action should be taken to provide them with better facilities as a national priority. That is the least the country can do for them.

Be careful what you wish for

Former TNA MP M. A Sumanthiran and ex-Northern Province Chief Minister C. V. Wigneswaran have come under fire for their views on LTTE violence. The former has provoked the ire of the pro-LTTE groups, who rake him over the coals for being critical of the LTTE’s violent campaign, during a recent TV programme. Wigneswaran has incurred the wrath of the victims of LTTE by praising the outfit. He seems to have forgotten the fate that befell the TULF leaders who affectionately called Prabhakaran and his cadres ‘boys’ and created their Frankenstein. The intelligent are said to learn from others’s experience.

Anyone who endorses horrible acts such as massacring civilians, abducting children and turning them into cannon fodder, eliminating dissenters physically, bombing civilian targets, exacting protection money, etc., he or she should spend a lot of time on a psychiatrist’s couch. All violent outfits flaunt some socio-political or religious causes in a bid to legitimise their terrorism. Those who have the courage to condemn the use of terrorism as a means to an end deserve commendation and not condemnation.

What would happen to the politicians who are praising Prabhakaran if the LTTE re-emerged and resumed its violence? They would be left with no alternative but to follow orders from the outfit again or face violent deaths; the TNA, which is championing human rights, would have to function as the LTTE’s mouthpiece again and abandon its campaign for a war crimes probe, for the LTTE has also been accused of having committed such atrocities.

Wigneswaran, having fallen out with the TNA, may be trying to gain some traction on the political front before the next general election by praising the LTTE. But if he really misses the LTTE, he had better be careful what he wishes for; he may just get it. He ought to remember the tragic end that awaited those who, like the lady of Niger, rode the Tiger, which returned with them inside and a big smile on its face.

Daily Mirror Editorial

Opposition for new cricket stadium

The government’s decision to build an international cricket stadium in Homagama has come in for criticism more than praise. The latest is that the regime has decided to halt construction of the sports facility in the face of objections raised by senior players. 

The regime promised that the facility would be the first to come up in the area in a drive to turn it into a ‘sports city’.

However retired senior cricketers have underscored the fact that the island nation doesn’t need anymore cricket stadiums. 

There is also a backlash from the people in the area regarding the building of such a sports facility. Hence Mahinda Rajapaksa, the premier of the present caretaker government, was forced to consider the views of prominent sports figures and experts regarding the building of the cricket stadium. 

The planning of the new stadium any way came to a halt due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Cricket is a crowd puller in Sri Lanka and is played in every nook and corner of the island. But much of the sport’s activities and the administration arm of the discipline-Sri Lanka Cricket- are centred around Colombo. 

This begs an answer from the government to the question ‘what good can be obtained by building a cricket stadium in remote Homagama?’

The cost of building this new stadium is estimated as US $ 30 million. The sports facility will be funded by the International Cricket Council and SLC. 

One of the biggest critics of the regime is former national captain ex-minister Arjuna Ranatunga. The World Cup winning captain has said that the funds allocated for the new stadium should be used for the ‘real development of cricket’. 

Another cricket captain Mahela Jayawardene critisises the regime’s plans for a cricket stadium while underscoring the fact that the islanders aren’t playing enough domestic matches in existing cricket stadiums.

If this cricket stadium comes up in Homagama it might experience the same fate of the already existing Mahinda Rajapaksa International Cricket Stadium which is situated at Sooriyawewa, Hambantota. For the record the stadium at Sooriyawewa is idling and is in a condition of neglect after having been hardly used; the venue only hosted a few matches during the 2011 World Cup and three matches during the 2012 ICC World T-20 Cricket Tournament. 

Critics point out that lawmakers during the past promoted cricket in areas which they wish to gain political mileage. Lawmaker Tyrone Fernando promoted Test matches in Moratuwa, but cricket fans from this area have been starved of such entertainment and the once famous Tyrone Fernando Stadium is not on the list of favoured venues to host international cricket.

The same can be said about the Rangiri Dambulla Stadium and the Asgiriya Cricket Stadium. 

The opinion aired that more cricket must be played at existing stadiums must be given serious thought. For this these existing stadiums must be upgraded and promoted for cricket activities. 

Cricketer turned lawmaker Ranatunga is often the thorn in the flesh for most lawmakers who air different views on cricket. He plays the role of watchdog when someone starts working contrary to his views on cricket. Most of the time Ranatunga agitates for nothing in cricket related activities. But his opposition with regard to a new stadium to be built in remote Homagama this time around was backed by community support. 

SLC is a highly politisised institute; hence its administrators might never oppose plans of the regime to build this stadium. This is a time when past cricketers did well to air their voices and shoot down this idea to have a new cricket stadium in Homagama because they felt it would not help the sport.