Two Repeatedly Used Words Today Are Education And The Acronym, FUTA
Bishop Dulip De Chickera
Two repeatedly used words in formal and informal conversations in several parts of the country today are education and the acronym, FUTA (Federation of University Teachers’ Associations). Where people gather with seriousness; clarification, explanation and interpretation of the current educational crisis takes place. The media have kept the debate alive with extensive coverage.
The good thing about the three-month long FUTA action is that it is educating the people on education. People are learning that free, quality education from the primary to the tertiary level is a fundamental responsibility of the State ; that good university teachers must be employed, retained with contentment and provided security of tenure if our universities are to flourish; that a governments seriousness in this task is measured by the money set aside for education and the degree of independence that educational institutions are given; and that there are worrying gaps between these primary obligations and existing realities.
Another welcoming feature about the FUTA action is its rare island-wide collaboration. In embracing academics of all communities from north and south, east and west it has demonstrated that the people of our country can rise above sectarian agendas in pursuit of a common cause.
Lessons in democracy
But the learning curve is not limited to education only. The issue is becoming a profitable case study in the pros and cons of democratic governance in Sri Lanka today. For instance, there is a relearning that governments are formed by the people and exist for the people; and that an important test of democratic governance is the extent to which governments are accountable to the people and willing to hear public opinion. People have also been reminded that it is their money (taxed and repayable loans) that governments use to run a country and that this task must be exercised with prudent planning. And many understand that there is therefore a breach of trust if governments stand outside the circle of accountability and arbitrarily reduce expenditure on essential welfare services such as education and health, which impacts initially on those already and most deprived.
