Termites and idiots

March 30, 2013, 5:45 pm

The national museum has been in the news during the past several months—of course, for the wrong reason. First, invaluable artifacts including an ancient sword and precious stones went missing mysteriously. It took the police months to recover them and a druggie was blamed for the theft. He has told us a tall story!

The manner in which the artifacts were removed proved that the museum was not safe for the country’s archeological treasure. Today, we know it is not safe for visitors either. On Thursday, a group of schoolchildren narrowly escaped death when a century-old wooden staircase gave way injuring 30 of them and ten others. Theirs was a miraculous escape for which they should thank their starts.

No sooner had the stairway collapsed than the government ordered a probe into the incident. There was no need for experts to rack their brains to find out what had gone wrong. A mere glance at the wooden wreckage would have been sufficient for anyone with average IQ to figure it out. The prediluvian wooden stairs had been in a dilapidated condition under a shiny veneer of varnish waiting to crash.

The collapse of the stairs has been blamed on termites. We do not need experts to tell us that. It is a case of termites and idiots. Old buildings partly made of wood are home to colonies of termites as is common knowledge. They eat wood so that they survive. What had those who are entrusted with the upkeep of the colonial edifice done to protect the woodworks against those invasive pests? They ought to be asked to explain why they never so much as looked under the old staircase while giving it thin coats of paint from time to time. It is unpardonable that they had not detected the decaying parts of the stairway. Some of the eyewitnesses to Thursday’s mishap have told the media that no official cared to control the movement of visitors after tickets were issued and a huge throng moved up the rickety stairway causing it to come crashing down.

The museum has been closed and action taken to repair the staircase, the government claims. It should not be reopened in a hurry. The strength of the entire building, especially its wooden sections, must be thoroughly tested before it is reopened for the public. Visitors must not be exposed to danger. Nobody knows what will collapse in that old building next.

The government is lucky that in this country people are not aware of their rights. Therefore irresponsibility, serious lapses and even criminal negligence on the part of public officials are taken for granted. No wonder public places are full of death traps which the authorities do not give a tinker’s damn about! Within the city itself, there are many manholes sans covers and unprotected wayside drains. A few years ago during a downpour, one of them became a watery grave for a woman who fell into it while wading through a flooded street in Colombo 7. Roads are excavated haphazardly and deep pits left open for days on end. Container carriers are parked on pavements and people have to walk on busy roads risking their life and limb. The police and the municipal authorities look the other way making one wonder whether they get their palms oiled to do so. If Thursday’s incident had happened in a western country where people are conscious of their rights and fight to protect them, the victims would have sued the museum out of existence.

If the government reopens the museum after effecting shoddy repairs to the stairway, we suggest the following warning be displayed prominently at its entrance:

"Welcome to the National Museum. Enter at your own risk!"

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