“Neither the fanatics nor the fainthearted are needed. Our duty as a party is not to our party alone, but to the nation, and, indeed, to all mankind. Our duty is not merely the preservation of political power, but the preservation of peace and freedom. So let us not be petty when our cause is so great. Let us not quarrel amongst ourselves when our nation’s future is at stake.”
– An extract from a speech that was to be delivered by late President John F. Kennedy on the day he was assassinated.
How pertinent are these words for our leaders today, busy as they are, scheming, plotting, and planning to outmanoeuvre each other, while the nation is slowly but surely bleeding dry. Indeed, when the need of the nation is so great, our political leadership, a dozen who matter at the most, have been unable to sit at one table and put country before party. It is our collective misfortune that we have elected a leadership that has proven to be innately incapable of seeing beyond their noses much to the detriment of the nation, which continues to be dragged down for no other reason than the personal insecurities of our so-called leaders.
It is a fact that the ruling party has messed up, and messed up big time, and the architect of it all is refusing to budge despite the unified and unwavering pleas of the people for him to step down. There is no point in pointing fingers and playing the blame game because the people are well aware of who did what and their response will surely come the next time they are consulted at a poll. However, the big question is, can the country make it to the next poll which is still a couple of years away?
Given this scenario, the next best thing would be for the alternative leadership to take up the long-winded road of unseating the Executive through recourse to the very Constitution that is also shielding him. If that too is too much of an ask, then the only other thing left is for everyone to sit at a table and thrash things out because time is running out and every minute wasted playing politics is contributing to the impending catastrophe. The people of this nation are not asking the parties to form themselves into a grand alliance or to fall in love with each other; all that they are asking is to do what is necessary to stave off the impending impoverishment-driven implosion.
Already, hunger and starvation have become part and parcel of life for the greater majority of the population on either side of the poverty line. This rising impoverishment has led to a crime wave that is sweeping the country with law enforcement struggling to cope. As an Opposition lawmaker remarked during a recent television debate, the events of 9 May only constitute the trailer of the horror movie that is yet to come. Given the bleak prospects, whoever is able to is abandoning the country in favour of greener pastures. According to the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment, more than 120,000 individuals have gone abroad for employment in the first five months of 2022, whereas only 122,000 people had done so in the whole of 2021.
With the writing on the wall, our party leaders will do well to remember the haunting words of JFK: It is obligatory for those holding high office at this critical juncture to at least now do what is right by the country. Party politics can and must resume once the country is on a better footing and people can look forward to a better tomorrow. In the interim they must act fast to stall the looming catastrophe by creating the necessary political stability that can only be achieved through political collaboration.
Our politicians must understand that governments will come and go but the State must continue, and in doing so it must have the interest of the people at heart and not that of governments, which are only temporary custodians of power. This is why the 21st Amendment is of critical importance as it will lay the foundation and operational infrastructure for the autonomous operation of the State, independent of the government of the day. Such a system is not only an absolute necessity to salvage what is left of the country’s governance structure, but also a prerequisite for the long-term stability of the nation.
The 21st Amendment which seeks to revert to governance through nine independent commissions must once and for all remove the State’s dependence on politicians for guidance. It is nothing but ludicrous for either the President, Prime Minister, or minister concerned “to issue instructions” in routine matters of governance – be it carrying out investigations, providing relief, or taking action in response to a situation. It is only when this umbilical cord connecting politicians to the State is severed that the nation will once again stand on its own feet. The role of politicians, by law, must necessarily be restricted to policy making, as in the rest of the developed world.
However, it does not help the cause when the bureaucracy is packed to a ratio of 1:3 of the required cadre with political stooges whose only job is to hold ‘pandan’ to their politician bosses. Any regime current or future that is serious about averting a similar crisis as the one at hand will have to look hard not only at the calibre of politician it nominates for key roles, but also flush out the bureaucracy of political riff-raff. It must begin the slow and painful process of replacing the deadwood with capable technocrats.
In order to make such a venture plausible given the reality of serious political consequences, parties must arrive at some consensus on the way forward for the next 10 to 15 years without upsetting the apple cart vis-à-vis economic policy every time a new government comes in. No country that enjoys economic prosperity today changes its economic policy along with the heads of the bureaucracy every time a new government takes office. The best example is neighbour India, which has been unwavering in its economic policy since the decision to reach out to the world in the early ’90s. Its bureaucracy or policy does not change with each government. Today that consistent policy has paid off, with the country well on its way to becoming an economic powerhouse. Our politicians must come together to at least agree in principle to support a core economic policy that should continue for at least the next decade. It is the quickest way to earn the confidence of investors and the multilateral agencies on which the country is pinning hope for a bailout. Discussion on such an arrangement must commence no sooner the 21st Amendment becomes law.
It is also a welcome development that parliamentary oversight committees are finally getting due attention from both the media as well as the public. It is the widely-held belief among the public at least that Parliament is all about the shouting match that takes place in the chamber every now and then. It is only now, given the attention being paid by the public to identify the causes of the current economic crisis, that proceedings of powerful parliamentary committees such as the Committee on Public Finance (COPF), Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE), Committee on Public Accounts (COPA), etc., have come to the limelight. Startling revelations during recent COPE sittings, such as the decision of the Central Bank to maintain the rupee at Rs. 203 to the dollar, busting $ 2.5 million in the process despite advice to the contrary, and the Health Ministry procurement system busting mega bucks for a dysfunctional system are just two cases that have shocked the nation and contributed to the economic calamity.
These committees underline the power of Parliament, which is the sole authority vested with monetary control of the State, to investigate and expose corruption. If these oversight committees are constituted with people of integrity and go about their task with the kind of due diligence a crisis of this magnitude demands of them, then it could play a more than useful complementary as well as supplementary role to the independent commissions in alleviating corruption and strengthening the governance structure going forward.
It is also heartening to note the public interest litigation seeking to hold to account those responsible for the present economic calamity. It effectively conveys the mood of the people, especially the younger generation agitating for greater transparency and accountability. However, it is unfortunate that the current political dispensation is finding itself completely at odds with public sentiment, as even when the parliamentary oversight committees are discovering systemic corruption of colossal proportions and public interest litigation is seeking to identify the individuals and the decisions they made that put the country in this situation, the President has thought it fit to appoint a special Commission of Inquiry to investigate incidents of arson from 31 March to 15 May, while not seeing the need to appoint such commissions to investigate the fertiliser crisis, especially the payment of $ 6.9 million for a fertiliser consignment that never arrived, import of nano fertilisers at exorbitant rates, and so on. No commissions have been appointed to probe the sugar or garlic scams either.
The newly-appointed Prime Minister is also not doing himself any favours by turning a blind eye to the accountability factor. In fact, whatever good the PM does in resurrecting the economy will in the end be offset by the fallout of his failure to hold to account those responsible for causing the issues that got us here. He should remember the verdict of the people at the last poll, where he was routed for no other reason than the failure of his administration to crack the whip. Nevertheless, the task at hand is to bring about consensus on the quick implementation of the 21st Amendment. While progress made at last week’s party leaders’ meeting is encouraging, the President is yet to make his position known on the matter.
Things have come to such a state that even a united front across the political spectrum, President included, may not be enough to pull this nation out of the rut it has got into; nevertheless, it is obligatory upon all party leaders to pull in that direction. It is veritably the last hope that this nation has to save itself. United we just may pull through, but divided, we have a snowball’s chance in hell of making it to the other side.
Political unity, the last hope
05 Jun 2022
Political unity, the last hope
05 Jun 2022
“Neither the fanatics nor the fainthearted are needed. Our duty as a party is not to our party alone, but to the nation, and, indeed, to all mankind. Our duty is not merely the preservation of political power, but the preservation of peace and freedom. So let us not be petty when our cause is so great. Let us not quarrel amongst ourselves when our nation’s future is at stake.”
– An extract from a speech that was to be delivered by late President John F. Kennedy on the day he was assassinated.
How pertinent are these words for our leaders today, busy as they are, scheming, plotting, and planning to outmanoeuvre each other, while the nation is slowly but surely bleeding dry. Indeed, when the need of the nation is so great, our political leadership, a dozen who matter at the most, have been unable to sit at one table and put country before party. It is our collective misfortune that we have elected a leadership that has proven to be innately incapable of seeing beyond their noses much to the detriment of the nation, which continues to be dragged down for no other reason than the personal insecurities of our so-called leaders.
It is a fact that the ruling party has messed up, and messed up big time, and the architect of it all is refusing to budge despite the unified and unwavering pleas of the people for him to step down. There is no point in pointing fingers and playing the blame game because the people are well aware of who did what and their response will surely come the next time they are consulted at a poll. However, the big question is, can the country make it to the next poll which is still a couple of years away?
Given this scenario, the next best thing would be for the alternative leadership to take up the long-winded road of unseating the Executive through recourse to the very Constitution that is also shielding him. If that too is too much of an ask, then the only other thing left is for everyone to sit at a table and thrash things out because time is running out and every minute wasted playing politics is contributing to the impending catastrophe. The people of this nation are not asking the parties to form themselves into a grand alliance or to fall in love with each other; all that they are asking is to do what is necessary to stave off the impending impoverishment-driven implosion.
Already, hunger and starvation have become part and parcel of life for the greater majority of the population on either side of the poverty line. This rising impoverishment has led to a crime wave that is sweeping the country with law enforcement struggling to cope. As an Opposition lawmaker remarked during a recent television debate, the events of 9 May only constitute the trailer of the horror movie that is yet to come. Given the bleak prospects, whoever is able to is abandoning the country in favour of greener pastures. According to the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment, more than 120,000 individuals have gone abroad for employment in the first five months of 2022, whereas only 122,000 people had done so in the whole of 2021.
With the writing on the wall, our party leaders will do well to remember the haunting words of JFK: It is obligatory for those holding high office at this critical juncture to at least now do what is right by the country. Party politics can and must resume once the country is on a better footing and people can look forward to a better tomorrow. In the interim they must act fast to stall the looming catastrophe by creating the necessary political stability that can only be achieved through political collaboration.
Our politicians must understand that governments will come and go but the State must continue, and in doing so it must have the interest of the people at heart and not that of governments, which are only temporary custodians of power. This is why the 21st Amendment is of critical importance as it will lay the foundation and operational infrastructure for the autonomous operation of the State, independent of the government of the day. Such a system is not only an absolute necessity to salvage what is left of the country’s governance structure, but also a prerequisite for the long-term stability of the nation.
The 21st Amendment which seeks to revert to governance through nine independent commissions must once and for all remove the State’s dependence on politicians for guidance. It is nothing but ludicrous for either the President, Prime Minister, or minister concerned “to issue instructions” in routine matters of governance – be it carrying out investigations, providing relief, or taking action in response to a situation. It is only when this umbilical cord connecting politicians to the State is severed that the nation will once again stand on its own feet. The role of politicians, by law, must necessarily be restricted to policy making, as in the rest of the developed world.
However, it does not help the cause when the bureaucracy is packed to a ratio of 1:3 of the required cadre with political stooges whose only job is to hold ‘pandan’ to their politician bosses. Any regime current or future that is serious about averting a similar crisis as the one at hand will have to look hard not only at the calibre of politician it nominates for key roles, but also flush out the bureaucracy of political riff-raff. It must begin the slow and painful process of replacing the deadwood with capable technocrats.
In order to make such a venture plausible given the reality of serious political consequences, parties must arrive at some consensus on the way forward for the next 10 to 15 years without upsetting the apple cart vis-à-vis economic policy every time a new government comes in. No country that enjoys economic prosperity today changes its economic policy along with the heads of the bureaucracy every time a new government takes office. The best example is neighbour India, which has been unwavering in its economic policy since the decision to reach out to the world in the early ’90s. Its bureaucracy or policy does not change with each government. Today that consistent policy has paid off, with the country well on its way to becoming an economic powerhouse. Our politicians must come together to at least agree in principle to support a core economic policy that should continue for at least the next decade. It is the quickest way to earn the confidence of investors and the multilateral agencies on which the country is pinning hope for a bailout. Discussion on such an arrangement must commence no sooner the 21st Amendment becomes law.
It is also a welcome development that parliamentary oversight committees are finally getting due attention from both the media as well as the public. It is the widely-held belief among the public at least that Parliament is all about the shouting match that takes place in the chamber every now and then. It is only now, given the attention being paid by the public to identify the causes of the current economic crisis, that proceedings of powerful parliamentary committees such as the Committee on Public Finance (COPF), Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE), Committee on Public Accounts (COPA), etc., have come to the limelight. Startling revelations during recent COPE sittings, such as the decision of the Central Bank to maintain the rupee at Rs. 203 to the dollar, busting $ 2.5 million in the process despite advice to the contrary, and the Health Ministry procurement system busting mega bucks for a dysfunctional system are just two cases that have shocked the nation and contributed to the economic calamity.
These committees underline the power of Parliament, which is the sole authority vested with monetary control of the State, to investigate and expose corruption. If these oversight committees are constituted with people of integrity and go about their task with the kind of due diligence a crisis of this magnitude demands of them, then it could play a more than useful complementary as well as supplementary role to the independent commissions in alleviating corruption and strengthening the governance structure going forward.
It is also heartening to note the public interest litigation seeking to hold to account those responsible for the present economic calamity. It effectively conveys the mood of the people, especially the younger generation agitating for greater transparency and accountability. However, it is unfortunate that the current political dispensation is finding itself completely at odds with public sentiment, as even when the parliamentary oversight committees are discovering systemic corruption of colossal proportions and public interest litigation is seeking to identify the individuals and the decisions they made that put the country in this situation, the President has thought it fit to appoint a special Commission of Inquiry to investigate incidents of arson from 31 March to 15 May, while not seeing the need to appoint such commissions to investigate the fertiliser crisis, especially the payment of $ 6.9 million for a fertiliser consignment that never arrived, import of nano fertilisers at exorbitant rates, and so on. No commissions have been appointed to probe the sugar or garlic scams either.
The newly-appointed Prime Minister is also not doing himself any favours by turning a blind eye to the accountability factor. In fact, whatever good the PM does in resurrecting the economy will in the end be offset by the fallout of his failure to hold to account those responsible for causing the issues that got us here. He should remember the verdict of the people at the last poll, where he was routed for no other reason than the failure of his administration to crack the whip. Nevertheless, the task at hand is to bring about consensus on the quick implementation of the 21st Amendment. While progress made at last week’s party leaders’ meeting is encouraging, the President is yet to make his position known on the matter.
Things have come to such a state that even a united front across the political spectrum, President included, may not be enough to pull this nation out of the rut it has got into; nevertheless, it is obligatory upon all party leaders to pull in that direction. It is veritably the last hope that this nation has to save itself. United we just may pull through, but divided, we have a snowball’s chance in hell of making it to the other side.
Kapruka
Discover Kapruka, the leading online shopping platform in Sri Lanka, where you can conveniently send Gifts and Flowers to your loved ones for any event. Explore a wide range of popular Shopping Categories on Kapruka, including Toys, Groceries, Electronics, Birthday Cakes, Fruits, Chocolates, Automobile, Mother and Baby Products, Clothing, and Fashion. Additionally, Kapruka offers unique online services like Money Remittance, Astrology, Medicine Delivery, and access to over 700 Top Brands. Also If you’re interested in selling with Kapruka, Partner Central by Kapruka is the best solution to start with. Moreover, through Kapruka Global Shop, you can also enjoy the convenience of purchasing products from renowned platforms like Amazon and eBay and have them delivered to Sri Lanka.Send love straight to their heart this Valentine's with our thoughtful gifts!
Discover Kapruka, the leading online shopping platform in Sri Lanka, where you can conveniently send Gifts and Flowers to your loved ones for any event. Explore a wide range of popular Shopping Categories on Kapruka, including Toys, Groceries, Electronics, Birthday Cakes, Fruits, Chocolates, Automobile, Mother and Baby Products, Clothing, and Fashion. Additionally, Kapruka offers unique online services like Money Remittance, Astrology, Medicine Delivery, and access to over 700 Top Brands. Also If you’re interested in selling with Kapruka, Partner Central by Kapruka is the best solution to start with. Moreover, through Kapruka Global Shop, you can also enjoy the convenience of purchasing products from renowned platforms like Amazon and eBay and have them delivered to Sri Lanka.Send love straight to their heart this Valentine's with our thoughtful gifts!