- Newly appointed Parliamentary Secy. Gen. Kushani Anusha Rohanadeera expounds on the value of the Parliament as a democratic institution
The roles and responsibilities of Sri Lanka’s Parliament – the main law making institution, which, being the Legislature, also functions as one of the three pillars of democracy – was questioned and criticised during the past year (2022). While the economic crisis – for which Parliamentarians were blamed – was the main reason behind this lack of trust, political analysts point out that the collapse of public trust in the Parliament did not start recently, and is not limited to the economic crisis. Today, the Parliament is seen as a place where money and power-hungry politicians execute their political plots, and the public’s faith in this crucial public institution has waned.
However, the Parliament and Members of Parliament (MPs) still play a decisive role in the country’s affairs. Irrespective of the political identity that has been assigned to the Parliament, it is still a public institution with unmatchable duties and powers. Noting this, the recently appointed Parliamentary Secretary General Kushani Anusha Rohanadeera told The Daily Morning that although efforts are being made to reduce the gap between the Parliament and the public, there is a lot more to be done. She explained the Parliament’s importance as a public institution and many activities that contribute to the lawmaking process that has not received attention.
Below are excerpts of her interview:
What are the composition, roles and responsibilities of the Parliament’s staff?
The legislature of any country has several main roles, including representing the public, scrutinising public finances and enacting legislation. In addition, there is also a massive oversight function which takes place through the committee-based system. The support, research, and resource management aspects of the performance of these tasks are handled by the Parliament’s staff. It basically helps MPs to do their job.
When it comes to the administrative structure, there are nine Departments that perform the said tasks. They are the Administration, the Sergeant-at-Arms, the Legislative Services, the Hansard, Finance and Supplies, the Coordinating Engineer, Information Systems and Management, Communication, Catering and the Housekeeping Departments. These Departments make up the Parliament’s administrative unit. In addition, we have three offices that handle the functions of the committees of the House. Oversight committees ensure the oversight function, through which accountability and transparency are achieved. There are 17 Sectoral Oversight Committees (SOCs) which were set up recently, and these 17 Committees cover subject areas that come under almost every existing Ministry.
When it comes to the Parliament’s staff, there are a large number of designations including the Secretary General, the Chief of Staff, the Deputy Secretary General and the Assistant Secretary Generals. Under them, are the nine Departments, which are headed by Directors, and these Departments have various positions to fulfil their duties. Promotions for the Parliamentary staff are given after five years of recruitment, through an efficiency bar test which tests the officials’ knowledge about Parliamentary practices, privileges, the Constitution, the Standing Orders, official procedures, and also establishment related and financial matters. Due to this being a closed service, sometimes, recruitments are made only when a vacancy becomes available. All members of our staff are educated and have been selected through tests, and many of them are bilingual.
In addition, in order to prevent frustration, especially when it comes to jobs that do not have a considerable path for career progression due to them being largely skills based, we have introduced a senior grade which can be achieved after 10 years in a position.
What are the main challenges faced by the Parliament’s staff?
Our challenges are mainly resource related. For example, in addition to the aforesaid committees, a large number of select committees have been established. Currently, there are around 78 committees, but only eight committee rooms are available in the Parliament complex. We have to somehow manage these space-related requirements. In addition, we have to hold these committee sessions on the sitting days, which sometimes is limited to eight days a month. This is the biggest challenge. We have had to allocate a separate office for SOCs. Even our staff is working in a very limited space. This is a Parliamentary complex that was built to suit the conditions that existed around 40 years ago. We definitely have to go for a refurbishment or build a new building in the near future in order to obtain more space.
We handle a huge volume of work and responsibilities within a limited time and with limited resources. We cannot leave any room for mistakes.
If any aspect of the existing administrative system needs to be changed, how is it done?
There are procedures for such needs. For example, in order to change Standing Orders, the relevant matters have to be referred to the Committee on Standing Orders and discussed among the member MPs. When it comes to financial regulations and related matters such as salary revisions, establishing new designations or refurbishments, there is a Staff Advisory Committee which is Chaired by the Speaker of the Parliament and includes the Minister of Finance, the Leader of the House, and the Leader of the Opposition. For instance, If changes are needed for the scheme of recruitment, we have to take the necessary permission from that Committee. The decisions taken at this Committee have to then be referred to the Cabinet of Ministers as a Cabinet paper, and the implementation of those decisions is possible following Cabinet approval. We cannot make decisions arbitrarily. When dealing with public funds, there should be transparency and there is no space to act in a questionable manner.
The Parliament’s staff has to interact with MPs quite often. In what ways do they engage with MPs and what is their experience in that regard?
Our staff raises awareness among MPs about various matters and assists in SOCs. They discuss these matters very often, and in reality, there is a good connection between the two parties. Certain functions, especially those pertaining to committees, cannot be performed without such a connection. We provide a lot of services to MPs. The Parliament’s library has a research division. If there is a debate, the materials and information that are necessary for MPs’ speeches are provided to ensure a fruitful discussion in the House. MPs always request and obtain instructions from the Bills Office when presenting Private Member Bills, get information about how documentation takes place, and obtain various other services relating to answering oral questions and questions regarding motions. MPs do a lot of things to raise their voice for voters, for which we assist.
We try to do our best with the resources that are available to us, in a manner that is politically neutral. It is difficult because sometimes, politicians could get politically-related impressions even through press releases and complain about the same. In such cases, we explain to them that that is not the case.
To ensure that MPs fulfil their duties, we, as the Parliament administration, hold many workshops and seminars for MPs, especially about SOCs, the Parliamentary legislative functions, and how Parliamentary business should be managed. Sometimes, we conduct various seminars for MPs’ staff members. All these efforts are aimed at strengthening them, as for the governing system to function properly, their role should be played properly. Not all these training sessions or seminars are conducted by us. While those about legislative processes are conducted by us, some areas such as financial issues require specialised knowledge and are conducted by external experts. For example, the Central Bank conducted one programme on the country’s economic situation.
The Parliament is a place where many documentation-related activities take place. How do you manage record-keeping related tasks?
We have many old records. In order to preserve them, several years ago, we started the digitisation process with the intervention of a former Parliamentary Secretary General and with various development partners. We scanned everything and digitised them. Although they are not accessible to the public yet, we are preserving them for the future generation. Our library has certain old documents which even the National Archives does not possess. Many MPs use the library, and there are various sections in the library dedicated for different discussions, for example on gender equality and social inclusion.
What is your opinion about the image of MPs within the general society?
Some media institutions attack MPs claiming that they are illiterate. However, many of them from both the ruling and opposition parties are educated professionals.
If an MP possesses substantial knowledge about a particular subject that is being debated in the House, that would be highly beneficial to the country. Even if they were not, they can still learn about it and do their research. We have a good library and so many repositories in the Parliament, which MPs could use to present good arguments during debates. There are countries where all MPs are graduates. But, when it comes to Sri Lanka, considering the nature of our country, we cannot impose a restriction about formal qualifications. Some of these MPs are coming from the grassroots level. Sometimes, regardless of qualifications, there are MPs that contribute to debates and stay updated about the relevant matters.
I really don’t think that we should impose particular qualification-related requirements on MPs in order to be a representative of the public. I personally think that it would be unfair. However, while serving as a MP, there are plenty of ways for them to improve and obtain knowledge. We have opened for the media the proceedings of the two main financial oversight committees, i.e. the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) and the Committee on Public Accounts (COPA). MPs have the opportunity to allow their voters to see their presentations. I think that they can easily rebuild their image among both the knowledgeable social strata and the public by showing that they are fulfilling their duties properly.
Sometimes, we see MPs slinging mud at each other instead of speaking about what is relevant to the topic. Although there are rules, sometimes, they do not act in accordance with them. I think that they should make good decisions about the public at oversight committees, present those decisions to the Cabinet of Ministers, and make policies and laws.
What do you think about the manner in which the relationship between the public and the MPs has changed in the recent past?
If we look at the past five years, there is a massive gap between the Parliament and the public. The main reason for this is that what the MPs do, does not get communicated to the public properly, which results in the public remaining under the impression that the Parliament is just a place where politicians yell with no purpose or engage in political discussions. The public does not know that much other work is also happening in the Parliament. As a matter of fact, it is a weakness, as we did not have the proper mechanisms to communicate the importance of this institution to the public.
In addition, the public had not seen the proceedings of Committees such as the COPE and the COPA through the media. However, now, our Communications Unit, which has two wings, namely, Media and Outreach, are conducting a number of programmes, including educating those visiting the Parliament, about the Parliament. In addition, we have taken steps to communicate the affairs of the Parliament to the public through social media platforms such as YouTube, Twitter and Facebook. The Women MPs’ Caucus too maintains a dedicated website where issues pertaining to women, gender, girl children, and social inclusion are discussed and articles and discussions on the same are published. We also have a good mobile application, through which, it is possible to watch Parliamentary proceedings live. In fact, my experience is that ordinary citizens actually know about and use this app.
Through all these endeavours, we are trying to reduce the gap between the public and the Parliament, and we, as officials, have a responsibility to address any hatred towards the Parliament if any.
What is your opinion about the various misconceptions among the public about the Parliament and how it functions?
The general impression that the public has about the Parliament is that it is an ineffective body that wastes public funds. However, it is completely wrong. A large number of duties are performed by the Parliament about which the public are not adequately aware. We are trying to address these misconceptions through effective communication.
For example, there is a notion that MPs could consume any food from the Parliament for free and that they get luxury, expensive food items. But, that is not true. At present, they receive a meal that is similar to what we would have at home, and with the country’s situation, we are not in a position to provide many food varieties. In addition, we are trying to use the minimum amount of public funds for this purpose. Society thinks that we waste food and allow MPs to take food home. The situation may have been such perhaps around 10 years ago. But, the present situation is different. We are mindful of the costs that the provision of food incurs and are trying to completely stop wastage.
There is another misconception that the Parliament’s staff is recruited based on connections, especially with politicians. That too is wrong, because there is a specific scheme of recruitment for every position; from the lowest to the highest. Every person has to face interviews and written exams, and in the case of skills-based positions, the applicants have to face trade tests which are conducted by experts. Therefore, the Parliament’s staff consists of truly qualified people. Even if certain requests have been made for connection related appointments, we have responded to the requesters that all applicants should go through the said tests.
Do you think that Sri Lanka’s Parliament, or the traditions that it adheres to, are in line with international standards or updates?
Theoretically, despite the fact that we are a small country and the idea that our MPs’ are weak, our Parliamentary system is very strong when compared with the Parliamentary systems of many developed countries. What is necessary is that MPs take the full benefit of this and show results. We have an electronic Parliament, and all the necessary documents such as agendas have been uploaded to the system which could be accessed by MPs through the equipment that they have been provided. We are in a good place as far as the use of technology is concerned, and the e-voting system we have is another example. Recently, the International Monetary Fund’s Deputy Managing Director came to Sri Lanka, and the team was surprised to see that we have been using an e-voting system for years because only a few countries in the region use such.