More vacancies in NEPC administration - Sampanthan

[TamilNet, Friday, 14 May 2004, 16:34 GMT]
The Trincomalee district parliamentarian, Mr.R.Sampanthan, has brought to the notice of the North-East Provincial Governor that several vacancies exist in the permanent cadre of the North East Provincial Council (NEPC) administration. Meanwhile several workers have been employed in the council on casual and adhoc basis without any prospect for claiming permanency.

Mr.Sampanthan recently met with the Provincial Governor, Major General Asoka Jayawardene, and requested him to take immediate steps to fill all vacancies in the council administrative structure, sources said.

Mr.Sampanthan pointed out that the present cadre is not enough to carry out smooth administration of the council and it should be increased in the future. As a first step, the authorities concerned should take urgent steps to fill all vacancies according to the present cadre position, he stressed.

At the national level 18 % of the recruitment to the public service should be given Tamils. Currently about 2 percent of Tamils are working in the central public service, Mr.Sampanthan said.

The Provincial Council system was introduced in the country with the sole purpose of providing a political solution to the Tamils' problem. The Jayawardene government in 1987 brought the thirteenth amendment to the constitution to accommodate the PC system according to the Indo-Sri Lanka pact signed by the then President Jayawardene and Prime Minister late Mr. Rajiv Gandhi, sources said.

Since the dissolution of the elected administration of the NEPC in 1989 by the then President R.Premadasa, the council is being administered by the central government. However all the other six provincial councils in the south are being administered by elected administration , sources said.