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Things like thefts and robberies have been happening in Negombo city continuously in the past. I would like to know your views on the security of Negombo city at present.
I was appointed as the chairman of the Negombo Business Association. The previous chairmen before me, especially they, had started this program in collaboration with the police. That program was called the
“Ukussa” program. It was started in connection with the security of the city. The business association spent a huge amount of money, hundreds of thousands of rupees, for it. That program provides great security to the city. Especially business places were protected. It was able to significantly reduce things like thefts and robberies in the city. But that program needs to be expanded further. But it will cost a lot of money. So it is difficult for the business association to spend that much money. Moreover, the police also have difficulty in providing the necessary resources for it.
It is difficult for us to be satisfied with the security of the city with this Ukussa program alone. That is why we have proposed a CCTV camera system that operates using satellite technology. All the senior police officers agreed. At the same time, even the former mayor has agreed to it. That means that a CCTV camera system that operates using satellite technology should be established to cover the entire city of Negombo and a separate operations room should be established for it. We will establish that operations room at the police station or somewhere else. This program is being created in such a way that everything that happens in the city can be monitored from there. If this program can be implemented, Negombo city can be provided with more security than it is now. We will have to bear a cost of about 04, 05 million for this. This program has not yet been implemented, especially due to problems such as the high cost involved. But the idea of implementing this program is still there. It has not been abandoned.
Nowadays, there is often heavy traffic congestion on the roads in and around Negombo. You have also proposed several solutions to reduce this traffic problem in the past. What happened to those solutions?
As a business association, we have a traffic committee that is implemented in collaboration with the Negombo Traffic Police. Through that committee, we recently implemented a one-way system in the city. It was very successful.
But some businessmen in the city complained that their shops were not doing business, especially since public vehicles such as buses and other vehicles were driving on only one side. So they often said that it was a big loss for them. Therefore, the one-way system had to be stopped halfway. But I personally think that if we do our business well, no matter where we are, our customers will find us and come to us. In that one-way system, we had the RDA, PRDA and the Negombo Municipal Council together. When that system was implemented, if the roads were broken, they would be repaired quickly. And these institutions supported things like removing garbage from the roads quickly. So when this one-way system was implemented, while vehicles going to and from the city were driving on one side of the roads, vehicles could be parked on the other side of the road. That reduced the traffic in the city to a great extent, and those coming to the city, especially those going to shops, got the opportunity to park their vehicles and buy their belongings. Now the problem is that when that system is gone, vehicles will be driving on both sides of the road. Now there is no space for those coming to the shops to park their vehicles. Also, to eliminate the traffic in the city, the traffic police have created an odd-even system based on 07 days of the week. So, if someone who does not know comes to the city and parks their vehicle on the other side instead of the proper side, the police will come and give them a ticket. So, some businessmen came to me and complained that because of this police ticket issue, many people who used to come to Negombo to buy goods have now been tempted to go to other cities to buy goods instead of coming to Negombo. This kind of problem will not arise if a one-way system is implemented like in the past. Now look at Colombo. The one-way system has been successful in Colombo and its suburbs. So if this is continued in Negombo, the traffic can be reduced to a great extent.
Negombo 1
Do you think that the only reason for the traffic congestion in this city is the lack of a one-way system like before and the lack of facilities to park vehicles coming to the city?
No, there is another major problem. That is this street trading. Street trading today. It is popular among many people. Because many people like to buy goods at a low price. We also like to buy goods at a low price. To buy goods at a low price, many people go to find street traders. Especially the night bazaar in Negombo. It is held by completely closing a road in the city. On the day of the night bazaar, not only vehicles but also people walking on foot cannot go on that road. We are not saying that street traders should be removed from this city. We should create an opportunity for them to do their business. We should provide an opportunity for them to do that trade in a formal way. There are alternatives to that. Now that money
