Hambantota port begins but citizens in the dark

For the past several months I have been observing with horror, between 8 a.m and 8.30 a.m., the sale of fish being carried on just outside the public toilets at Kochchikade junction, Colombo 13.

I wonder whether the PHI of the area has turned a blind eye to this. Sumith de Silva Kesbewa

I believe the relevant authorities should take immediate action to stop this as it is most unhealthy and unbecoming. Or will it just be ignored like all other matters that are brought to the notice of the authorities? Aloma Gamage Via email Concerned Resident Moratuwa

Condominiums have come to stay and so has the problem of garbage collection from the condominiums.

After the Meethotumulla disaster, there is a lull in the collection of garbage from the Colombo condominiums. Thus, garbage is piling up in the premises, emanating a nauseating odour. Cockroaches and worms are seen freely moving about and playing hide and seek in and about the garbage collection areas.

I live in a condominium flat in Wellawatte, where there is an international restaurant frying chicken and potatoes .This, was and is, causing additional problems not only to the occupants in the condominium building but also to other

The Hambantota Port has been talked about for many months under the present Government, about sale or lease and loan swap and so on, followed by a one page advertisement in the Sunday Times of March 26, as a message from the Government but the public remain in the dark. Neither the Government nor the media have made things clear to the people unfortunately. This one page could have carried important salient terms in the agreement for information rather than making a showpiece using tax payers’ money.

The said advertisement states that because of the huge loan taken to construct the Port our generation and future generations will be responsible in settling the debt. But is it reasonable and justifiable to residents in the vicinity, in that, we are compelled to breathe unpalatable smells and hear the noise, particularly in the nights, when the exhaust is operated by the restaurant. In addition to the above, there is another perennial problem of toilet leaks from the restaurant, which ooze into the apartment building’s basement car park. The polluted water stagnates there. The management corporation has been fined a couple of times for breeding mosquitoes.

The management corporation’s half-hearted efforts to impress upon the restaurant authorities the need to remedy the situation did not bring the desired results. A sign a 99-year lease agreement with a private party to hand over the assets built with the loan which is again tying down our generation and future generations without their consent but because of a decision made by a few politicians?

The initiative to convert the Port into a fully functional and profitable international port like the Colombo Port is credit worthy but is the procedure and process adopted with lack of transparency acceptable? No.

This process seems to have gone on for about two years but many questions abound including about the total valuation including the vast extent of land apart from the loan amount (Ports Authority had paid several millions of rupees for land acquisition) , revenue stream to the Ports Authority, how was loan repay- suitable remedy is in their hands but it appears that some are reluctant to put their foot down, as they want to be in the good books of the restaurant for reasons best known to them.

It is suggested that condominiums with over 50 apartments and large hotels and restaurants be provided with facilities at the time of construction itself, to recycle/compost the garbage in their own premises and thereafter arrange for disposal. This process may not only mitigate the garbage problems, but also create avenues for earning an income to defray the cost of recycling. K.Anaga Colombo 6 ment of about US$220 million made by the Ports Authority from Colombo earnings accounted, how a 99 year period was accepted and was it after examination/evaluation of the complete Business Plan, termination clause and hand back value and so on.

Many articles appear, debates have been held and protests by some trade unions continue over these issues. I presented some of these issues in an article in the Sunday Times of January 29. But unfortunately neither the Government nor the media has been able to present a clear view of the true contents of the so called final Agreement for the benefit of the people of this country who elected this government, a sad state of affairs. D.Godage Via email

I wonder whether the Works Department of the Kandy Municipal Council too went into slumber when this council was dissolved. I complained about the poor state of the road branching off Riverdale Road in Kandy near my house and the Chief Works Engineer inspected this road about 11 months ago. He promised to (a) construct a drain along this road (b) provide a catch-pit near my house and (c) provide an asphalt pre-mix surfacing on this road.

I had to go abroad about a month after the site meeting and when I returned after 10 months, I found that none of the items of work mentioned had been carried out. I wrote officially to the Chief Works Engineer informing him about the situation and since he did not respond I spoke to him over the telephone. Then he informed me that he was attending to a more important job and cut the line. I wonder whether these officers feel that they are doing a favour to the ratepayers when they carry out an official job occasionally. When the ratepayers make a complaint about something not functioning properly they are requested to write officially. These officers seem to have misunderstood their official duties. It looks like all they do is travel about in official vehicles without attending to facilities that need immediate attention. The Works Branch of the Kandy Municipal Council is the most inefficient.

The street lamps near my house have not been functioning for about seven months and the whole area had been in darkness as no one else had complained about this. These officers wait until someone complains to attend to a problem. It appears that the Municipal Commissioner too is not interested in supervising the work carried out by various branches of the Municipality. A disappointed ratepayer Kandy