Editorial - Don’t fiddle with free education

12 June 2012 09:11 pm - 7 - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

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With the gradual and now extensive privatisation of the health sector, the cost of warded treatment in private hospitals is so high that it is beyond the reach of more than 85 per cent of our people. In addition to five-star hotels, we now have five-star hospitals where helpless unsuspecting patients are plundered and their families lose most of their savings.

We need to take a lesson from what has happened in the health sector and act fast before some vested interests backed by arrogant politicians privatise the equally–important sector of education to such an extent that it causes serious damage to the free education service which has been one of the precious blessings for Sri Lanka in a country plagued by rampant corruption and fraud, deception and hypocrisy.

The attack on free education began with the setting up of international schools. Indeed there were loads of faults and failures in public schools with hundreds of them lacking even basic facilities. The root cause of it was the inadequacy of the budgetary allocation for education. During the thirty–year war a huge allocation had to be made for defence, but even after the end of the war, the allocation for education has not been significantly increased while Education Minister Bandula Goonewardene often talks of cheese but gives chalk. Higher Education Minister S.B. Dissanayake has virtually declared war on those who are opposing his plans to set up private universities and to give official status to the private medical college which was set up at Malabe in a subtle if not deceptive way. Minister Dissanayake who had his roots in the Communist Party seems to have turned full circle and often talks like an outright capitalist with a tone that is arrogant and unwilling to come to some middle path of accommodation. As a result, he has antagonised thousands of university students, academic and non-academic staff on issues ranging from privatisation to salary anomalies.

If Sri Lanka has a high literacy rate today with a high degree of intelligence, creativity, initiative and imaginative skills especially among the young people, free education is responsible for it.

Instead of trying to privatise education, the two ministers need to focus more attention on changing the aims, goals and attitudes in education. Passing examinations by fair means or foul and through the scourge of private tuition must not be the priority. Instead we need to create a spirit of inquiry in children, making them interested to find out why various things happen as they do. Then the children will see education as a blessing and not as a burden.

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Comments - 7

Dorothy Tuesday, 12 June 2012 09:49 PM

SriLanka is fast becoming a show piece in modern development . But please do not take way the investment in Free education and put that funding into other areas like building roads and bridges for then we remove one exhalted show piece to make way for another of less value Some of our better known intellectuals came from the non fee levying schools where dedication of the teachers were the name of the game !

Jayantha Wednesday, 13 June 2012 02:44 AM

Important article for everyone's attention. Anyway politician using the every means including the media will ultimately cheat the people and will achieve there goal unless the people show their disapproval to the politicians at the right moment when they have strength to express their disapproval against these policies.

sunanda Wednesday, 13 June 2012 05:22 AM

What you say about private hospitals is very true - now it is a five star facility - Recently one of my friends got admitted to a private hospital near general hospital and they have charged Rs. 500/= for each pair of gloves which is Rs. 15/= in outside pharmacies and a capsule of antibiotic is Rs. 290/= which is
Rs. 70/= outside and Dr's charges who did the Surgery was
very nominal when compared to hospital charges.

Richardson Wednesday, 13 June 2012 09:58 AM

C W W Kannangara ruined our education system
He introduced free education with out a proper plan or a proper system. Today No body has the guts to say it. He is sacred now.

In Sri Lanka media or any influential group can
create " heroes".

" Sale, Sale ,doctorates are for sale,no education is necessary."

sg Wednesday, 13 June 2012 02:28 PM

Entire higher education is a mess at the movement, we cant understand what are the expectations ? the main problem is there are no real and suitable people or person to handdle education section in this country. This is terrible quetion please draw the attention in this fregard by the relavant authoriies.

Vaidy Wednesday, 13 June 2012 04:20 PM

Let the Government establish private hospitals in each district charging actual cost and release the overcrowding and two patients on one bed, ground patients in state hospitals.Intensive attention could be given in better equipped hospitals and transferred to private hospital hospitals for nursing and after care

Vaidy Wednesday, 13 June 2012 04:29 PM

Private Hospital charges

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Editorial - Don’t fiddle with free education

Comments - 7

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