Top Cop’s son- in-law: cover up by long arm of the law?

A crackdown by traffic policemen on drunken driving in the city and suburbs began a few years back. When the cops initially got tough on drunken driving, the social types in Colombo and the midnight revelers resented.

Some were miffed that even a handsome bribe failed to do the trick.
What is more, those who failed the breathalyzer test had to stay put in the police station; sometimes with their wives and children until a friend or relative showed up. Invariably, two sober drivers were required, one to drive to the police station at the ungodly hour and the other to drive the car of the ‘drunken’ driver.

The cops on the beat are unrelenting. Name dropping serves no purpose. On one occasion, a university batch mate of a previous police chief ended up paying a big fine in courts.

The crackdown on drunken driving in the City was one big success. The exercise was extended to the hills and the provinces.

Senior policemen steered clear. They hardly intervened when friends were copped for driving under the influence of liquor. Punitive action including the fear of losing one’s licence proved a good deterrent.

Motorists did not mind the crackdown as it made Sri Lankan roads safe for all.

To beat the system, either drivers were recruited or wives learnt to drive. Others hired vehicles or flagged the simple tuk tuk after their drunken orgies.

No one was above the law; so no one grudged the work of the long arm of the law.

But a fortnight ago, we saw double standards meted out to the son-in-law of a top cop, a very big wig at that.

Last week, our sister paper The Nation on Sunday exclusively reported the story that the OIC Welikada was transferred after he carried out a breathalyzer test on the top cop’s son- in-law and entered the results in the police information book. The brave OIC did not bow to pressure from his superiors, who frantically called him to drop the matter.

We salute this bold officer who needs to be promoted for performing his duties without fear or favour. His singular action stands out in a department bedeviled by charges of politicization and favouritism. This officer is certainly the proverbial shining needle in a hay stack, and is worthy of emulation.

The authorities are now claiming the transfer was on account of inefficiency on the part of the officer. It is too much of a coincidence that the officer should be transferred hot on the heels of his salutary action. The public needs to know how many officers have been transferred for inefficiency in the recent past.
In government departments, particularly the police, transfers are hardly based on efficiency. They are more or less punishment transfers resulting from failure to do the bidding of politicians.

We call upon the National Police Commission to ensure that this police officer is not victimized for performing his duty. It is a sacrilege to punish an officer who performed his duty according to his conscience in keeping with the law when many an officer is guilty of dereliction of duty.

Irate motorists who have been at the receiving end of traffic police for the past several years will demand justice in this detection. The hitherto moral high ground of the police on the highways and byways of Colombo at dusk will be punctured if this relative of the police big wig goes unpunished.

Cherry Blair, wife of a former British Prime Minister, was charged for ticket less travel in public transport and a former service chief in New Zealand was charged for trying to influence the cop who booked his wife for a traffic offence. All he did was to step out of the car his wife was driving to display his uniform.