Fags banned in Vavuniya

The Vavuniya South Tamil Pradeshiya Sabha has banned the usage of polythene and sale of cigarettes in areas which fall under its purview from March 1, it was reported on Thursday.

The decision was made after a proposal to this effect was unanimously approved by the members of the Pradeshiya Sabha. Public Health Inspectors in the area are expected to assist the implementation of this proposal in a proper manner.

Meanwhile, the Vavuniya South Sinhala Pradeshiya Sabha has completed 80 percent of implementing a similar project which bans the sale of cigarettes in areas under its purview. But under what law have they done so? Apart from the debate whether smoking is bad for your health, this decision is certainly hazardous to the legal system of the land and impugns upon the right of Parliament to be the sole lawmaker.

In the week that saw the Finance Minister raise the price of a pack of fags by a hundred bucks to enable the Exchequer to enhance its income to better balance the nation’s budget, under what law did the members of the Vavuniya Pradeshiya Sabha act to ban the sale of cigarettes and thus deprive the government earning its keep from a legitimate source of income?

This, it is reported, has also led the Jaffna provincial council to pass a similar resolution but the move was butted out when it was realised that they had no legal right to do so.

If every single Pradeshiya Sabhas in the country – and there are over 300 of these meaningless ones in existence – decide to impose bans on goods legitimately sold in the country what we will have is a form of de facto federalism which the central government new constitutional draft is desperately trying to avoid.

And why stop at cigarettes? If the mood takes these Sabha, some of which are notorious for having suspected criminals on its benches, whats to stop them from banning soap and toothpaste or any other good that they take a pet hate to? What about banning newspapers that don’t reflect their political views? The Sunday Times, for instance?

It’s time for the central government to crack the whip and bring these pups to heel before other Sabhas begin to issue their own dictats in their areas. If this is not stubbed out now this small island will have rules, regulations and laws varying from area to area and a central police force confused as to what laws to enforce – whether the general law of the land is to be followed or the little fiats issued by the Sabha to be obeyed.