With a Presidential Election looming ever so large on the horizon, significantly enough becoming due on 18 September, a day after the birth anniversary of its creator and first Executive President J.R. Jayewardene, it is now a seven-month dead heat to arguably the most decisive election Sri Lanka has ever faced since independence.
The voters of this country, the 6.9 million in particular who voted for the last elected President and having firsthand experienced the perilous consequences of their action over the next two years, will no doubt be looking to make amends for their lack of foresight the last time around, which unfortunately pushed this country back by a decade at the very least.
A record mandate, disastrous decisions by the elected Executive, and the consequential events, leading to a non-entity at the last poll becoming the Executive, just goes to show the level of caution with which electors must exercise their civic duty in future.
Election 2019 will most probably be the last time that Sri Lankan voters – notorious for thinking with their hearts rather than minds – will take things for granted. With radical political change now more or less a distinct possibility, the stakes are certainly high and so is the number of contenders. But it appears that, despite the distractions and side shows, notwithstanding a dramatic turnaround in fortunes by a lesser-known candidate, the starting line-up is becoming more obvious.
That being so, Sri Lanka will not be Sri Lanka if the incumbent administration does not try a doosra, in cricketing parlance, to derail the electoral process by tinkering with the Constitution. The various noises being made by faithful mouthpieces on the need for abolition of the executive presidency and constitutional reform at the tail end of a five-year term should therefore be not taken lightly, for it reeks of less-than-honourable motives.
But such manoeuvring is par for the course in this politicians’ paradise and more so with the incumbent Executive, whose claim to fame has more to do with backstage manoeuvring than political appeal.
The question that people are asking is, why now? Are the people clamouring for it the way they did 10 years ago? The answer is no. So then for what purpose is the issue being raised on the eve of Sri Lanka’s most crucial election? Besides, any such attempt would lack credibility given the current status quo of a President without a public mandate supported by a party which too can no longer claim a mandate after the former elected President, Prime Minister, and Cabinet all resigned en masse in May and June 2022. Therefore, such an endeavour should exclusively be reserved for the next Parliament.
If indeed reform is necessary at this juncture – and needed it is – it should be in the methodology of choosing the best man for the highest office in the land given the tough luck the people and this nation have had with the last trio in the past decade.
Rather than the traditional and now proven ineffective manner of individual parties naming their respective candidates and then asking people to blindly vote for them based on party loyalty, why not introduce selection criteria based on the American model where firstly candidates have to stake a claim for candidacy within their own party and then, once secured, proceed to debate with candidates of other parties before a national audience so that voters have an opportunity to gauge the suitability of each candidate? Thereafter if the elected president does not match up to expectations, the onus will squarely be on the electors.
Such a methodology can greatly help to filter out misfits for the role – the greatest lesson the country can learn from its most recent political misadventure. By continuing to rely on over-the-top party propaganda rather than direct engagement with the aspiring candidate to gauge ability, policies, and principles, history could well be repeated. If any job, be it private or public, must necessarily require a prior interview where competencies are gauged in relation to job role, why should it not apply to the highest office in the land?
Today’s rapidly-evolving world has no place for the old political guard whose survival is essentially rooted in deception. Countries like Rwanda, Ethiopia, India, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Vietnam, and the likes – all of which were struggling for survival not so long ago – are now rising phoenix-like, powered by a new generation of leaders attuned to the dynamics of the times we live in.
The leaders of these rapidly-growing nations have realised that the only thing that will hold the future generations in good stead is the quality of its leaders. These nations are not only investing heavily in education but also focusing on getting their youth educated in harmony with their nation’s resources and necessities. That Sri Lanka is lagging far behind in this aspect is obvious, yet little is being done to align educational parameters with the rest of the modern world.
To make matters worse, the cream of the country’s academia is leaving in droves in search of greener pastures. It is common knowledge that a university don here can easily earn many times more serving in universities in the West and Far East. Therefore, those who have made a conscientious decision to remain and dedicate their life to the next generation of Sri Lankans must necessarily be recognised and adequately rewarded.
From a political perspective, it is indeed refreshing to see the main Opposition already having identified education as the nation’s key driver and proceeded to invest heavily in that sector while still being in Opposition. Its ongoing programme to transform classrooms across the country into smart classrooms and providing mobility through the provision of school buses is commendable.
Sri Lanka’s bane over the last couple of decades has been the poor quality of its parliamentary and ministerial talent. This country can no longer hope to compete with the rest of the world, leave alone rub shoulders even with those regionally closest to us, by appointing village thugs to Parliament – as has been the case thus far. The old guard thrived and encouraged this trend, for it not only helped with grassroots mobilisation but also in matters of governance as these individuals, whose specialty lies in brawn over brain, are easy to manage – unquestioningly raising their hands when told to do so. The joke is that most have no idea about what they say ‘aye’ to.
Mediocre leaders who feel threatened, intimidated, and challenged in the face of intellectuals gladly subscribe to this outdated governance methodology, which, over the years, has dragged Sri Lanka down a perilous route. If this nation is to ever turn the corner, it must urgently replace mediocrity with excellence and professionalism at all levels of the governance hierarchy, starting at the top.
Therefore, with elections close at hand, political parties big and small that aspire to hold office must introduce strict criteria for its candidates and only nominate those who merit nomination. It is the only way that the stock excuse for mediocrity these days – that they were elected by the people – can be remedied. These parties must remember that the people can only vote for whom the parties nominate, therefore that process must not only be meticulous but also secure Sri Lanka’s future. For that is what is on the line come the next round of elections. Rest assured, electors appear ready to discharge their collective civic duty towards a better, forward-looking Sri Lanka.