Given the dog in the manger autocracy of the United National Party (UNP) leadership, the news when it came on Monday, wasn't all that surprising. In juicy newsbytes, breaking news SMS' revealed that the Party's Working Committee had decided to expel 21 members of local bodies including two Provincial Councillors. Reportedly, the sole voice of dissent had come from the Member of Parliament from Hambantota, the contrary presence in the Committee.

In the prevailing culture of impunity, repeated high-handed acts by politicos and their henchmen are contagious. Failure on the part of the government hierarchy to take appropriate action against the perpetrators, tantamount to tacitly condoning the crude and often violent acts, instilling the belief that 'might is indeed right' and the right political connections place the politicos above the law. The sham investigations often carried out into the more serious transgressions do not help in any way to instill confidence, for almost always, the culprits are found innocent, evidence notwithstanding,

Not long ago, DIG Vass Gunawardena was touted as a knight in shining armour, trying to save the hapless Sri Lankan citizenry from vicious underworld gangsters. That was how the government and those kept police reporters of media projected Gunawardena to a clueless public. Now, with sordid details about his alleged complicity in the murder of millionaire businessman, Mohammed Shiyam of Wellawatta, Vass Gunawardena has come, a full circle. In the eyes of the public, he is now the quintessential villain.

The move of the government to introduce a new Code of Ethics for the media is not only seen as redundant, as there is already such a Code in existence, but significantly, does not look transparent at all. The drafting of such codes are expected to be an inclusive endeavour; however, in this instance, the draft has been circulated to a selected few, primarily the constituent parties of the government who are no doubt in the same wavelength as the ruling party.If the Code is for the benefit of the country and the media, it should ideally be freely available for debate, discussion, criticism and for alternate views. Lest we forget, Sri Lanka is still a participatory democracy. This is the time to invite proposals and create a consensus, which would aid in the formulation of a Code of Ethics beneficial to the people, the media and the country, rather than wait till it is implemented in September when journalists and media institutions may protest against its contents.

It appears neither the government nor its cohorts know the depths of hypocrisy they descend to. Not every now and then, but more often than not. From one level they cry foul behind a andlsquo;halalandrsquo; veil and from another they strive to depict themselves as the sacred guardians of the four noble truths and Abhidhamma.andnbsp;

A news report said a boat carrying some 68 Sri Lankans illegally heading for Australia had gone missing. This is just one of many recent attempts by the Sri Lankans to flee their land of birth for a better life in the greener pastures in the Down Under and Canada. Though the majority of those would be asylum seekers would cite gory tales of torture and murder at the hands of the State military apparatus, in order to appeal to their western audience, the majority of them are, in fact, fleeing miserable economic conditions back home. In other words, they are economic migrants.That existential reality back home is equally alarming as those purported andndash; and often exaggerated - claims of human rights abuses that would be asylum seekers cite to justify their exodus.

The Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE), after its comprehensive probe into the performance of State-owned enterprises, issued its annual Report for 2012 along with the much-awaited results last week. And the findings are not good, not good at all, especially for the 'pet' corporations whose top jobs are usually sought after by many a government henchman. The usual culprits, Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC), Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB), Sri Lankan Airlines and Mihin Air, have accounted for 95% of the public sector losses.

The government's great hurry to introduce a Code of Ethics for the media smacks of hypocrisy, for while it seeks to asphyxiate media freedom with ostensible good practice guidelines, we have parliamentarians flouting the same moral conventions using their privileges as a shield. This came into stark evidence during the recent debate to amend the Sri Lanka Press Council Law, when a bombshell was dropped into the proceedings in the form of Prageeth Ekneligoda's whereabouts.

Perhaps we need to adopt a totally unconventional method and policy to rid ourselves of this menace that comes in the form of dengue fever. The conventional methods, tactics and practices employed to date appear to have failed completely, if recent media reports on the number of dengue cases are anything to go by.

The coastal belt is reeling from a disaster that cost 44 lives, and the death toll is mounting, after the gale force winds wreaked havoc in the wee hours of Saturday. Around 30 fishermen have gone missing in the treacherous seas, and their families fear the worst.