CLASSIFIED | POLITICS | TERRORISM | OPINION | VIEWS





 .
 .

 .
 .
.
 

WHEN HIGH BEREAUCRATS BECOME DEGENERATES...

ASOKA S.

The story goes like this....

The coordinating secretary to Ministry of Defense accompanied by armed bodyguards drove right through a police checkpoint without stopping. And when a police officer and a soldier of the checkpoint squad gave chase on a motorbike and stopped the van in question, they were both bundled into the van and beaten up. Later they were taken to the Kurunegala Police Station and further beaten up right in front of the OIC of the police station and abused in filth.

My, my. This happened in our beloved 80 year old democracy of Sri Lanka. There are few key points worth noting here. The coordinating secretary is so bull headed by virtue of his position he feels insulted by being stopped or questioned by a simple law enforcement officer of his own ministry. Second, he was so exasperated by being demeaned by a simple cop he drove them right to the nearest police station and had them beaten up right in front of the station boss. Third, to add insult to injury, the MOD ordered the cop and the soldier to appear in the head office to answer questions.

The crime committed by the cop and the soldier? Just doing there job. If I was the Coordinating Secretary I would award the cop and the soldier for being so conscientious of his duty while taking the most series disciplinary action against the driver who ignored (and broke) the checkpoint. As far as the cop and the soldier is concerned the van could have been carrying Prabhakaran so they went over and above their call of duty. Kudos to the two of them. They should be promoted for pure bravery as the van was carrying weapons.

This case should not be handled by the MOD only. This should be handled in a court of law where a judge will decide if a crime has been committed and if so the highest punishment accorded by law should be dished out to the so called coordinating secretary and his goons. But several predicaments are likely to hinder such a process in Sri Lanka.

Will the police provide the right evidence to the bench in light of possible consequences to their own carriers? On the contrary, political hand twisting from the top may totally distort the police evidence to the point that the victims may end up in jail or even lose their jobs. Will the coordinating secretary have his job next week? In all likelihood yes he will.

It is widely said the Secretary to the Ministry of Defense Gotabhaya Rajapaksha is an honorable man of principles and respect the rule of law. This will be an ideal case in point that he can become a beacon of justice by allowing the law of the land to take its own course without interference. Let the culprits be dished out the maximum possible punishment while the local media be allowed to provide maximum coverage.

That is one way to cleanse our democracy of bureaucratic trash who hold positions of power. The less trash you have in the government machinery, the less smell the people will feel.



Disclaimer: The comments contained within this website are personal reflection only and do not necessarily reflect the views of the LankaWeb. LankaWeb.com offers the contents of this website without charge, but does not necessarily endorse the views and opinions expressed within. Neither the LankaWeb nor the individual authors of any material on this Web site accept responsibility for any loss or damage, however caused (including through negligence), which you may directly or indirectly suffer arising out of your use of or reliance on information contained on or accessed through this Web site.
All views and opinions presented in this article are solely those of the surfer and do not necessarily represent those of LankaWeb.com. .

BACK TO LATEST NEWS

DISCLAIMER

Copyright © 1997-2004 www.lankaweb.Com Newspapers Ltd. All rights reserved.
Reproduction In Whole Or In Part Without Express Permission is Prohibited.