As the Presidential Election nears, the age-old practice of ‘primate’ politics in Sri Lanka will begin to unravel in the coming weeks. Given that many politicians from across the political divide in the Legislature are not happy where they are, this week will likely kick off the swing-vine-crossover frenzy, which will see principals thrown out, loyalties shattered, voters forgotten and self-preservation reign supreme. 

Alas, this is the true face of Sri Lankan politics. And we are still very much a landscape (politically speaking) of age old faces, and they will soon prove that little has changed.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe has a shopping list, and will likely include about two dozen members of the Parliament. One notable swing over gave advanced warning to his party last week, speaking on borrowed time from the Government, Samagi Jana Balawegaya Chairperson, former Army Commander, Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka’s walking barrage on Opposition leader Sajith Premadasa left little doubt that, Fonseka was going to go jungle gym and swing over to the awaiting hands of Wickremesinghe soon. How soon you may ask? Sooner than most may expect. Fonseka has been working on a book; it is likely that its launch will also signal a new political direction for him. Another serial swing vine politician with a medical background was seen singing praises of the President last week and is likely to be one of the first of the political tribe to migrate to ‘greener pastures’ envisaged with the President. As the countdown to the Presidential Election begins, the vines will be tested more frequently, leaving the constitutions/voters at a loss as to who represents them, or if the policies they voted for matter at all. However, this time, the excuse will be ‘to create a stable Government, so that the IMF process can be followed thorough’, a noble cause, no doubt – but Sri Lankan politics has always been more about self-preservation over national interests.  The ‘swing fest’ will likely have an impact on the reforms agenda the IMF’s EFF agreement requires Sri Lanka to follow through on.

Since the 1990’s ‘cross-over politics’ has seen policy making and implementation suffer at the hands of greedy politicians who are often more interested in securing portfolios and benefits, rather than represent their parties policies which the electoral base voted for. Despite criticism of those who engage in crossover politics for disregarding the wishes of the voters who elected them and the policies on which they were elected, crossovers have been common in the country’s political landscape. The corrosive nature of such politics often makes it near impossible for robust policies to be adopted, and implemented through the Parliament. The ‘swing’ effect has derailed many plans for reforms and accountability in the past. It has also been used to secure votes for reckless and dangerous bills and amendments to the constitution.

For example, one Member of Parliament, once a Sports Minister, then the Minister-in-charge of Higher Education, who his constituents have been sending back to hold office, contested recently from the Nuwara Eliya District under the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP). He first contested the 1989 General Election under the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) and then crossed over to the UNP in 2001 before returning to the SLFP-led United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) in 2010. As such, no one knows which policies he stands for or not. It seems such politicians are only interested in securing their futures, through accessing a portfolio and remaining on the side that ‘is in power’. This shameless culture of politics also holds a mirror to the voter landscape. How fickle many voters can be to return such persons to office is also a question which Sri Lankans should ask themselves.

It remains to be seen how such crossover politics will be spun and ‘sold’ to the public. One can only hope that following the socio-economic crisis of the last few years, and the so called political ‘awakening’ that the public is said to have gotten through the ‘aragalaya’ movement, will actually have an impact on voter’s political maturity in Sri Lanka. The next General Election results, and the number of ‘old and tarnished’ faces which are returned to Parliament, will be the judge of that hypothesis.