“When the gap between the sacrifices made by people and the service they receive from politicians grows big, it leads to a weariness in the heart of a nation; a draining away of the hope, the spirit, the belief in a better future, that we need to move forward together. Now, this wound, this lack of trust, can only be healed by actions, not words” – Keir Starmer

These words, which formed the second sentence of the new British Prime Minister’s acceptance speech on Friday (5) – the first being to pay tribute to his predecessor – have a far more profound bearing on this island nation struggling to make ends meet than on the relatively better-off UK, where the Labour Party swept to office with an unprecedented majority, wiping the Conservative Party off the electoral map. Ring a bell? 

And what was the first reaction of his predecessor, ousted Prime Minister Rishi Sunak? It was to apologise to party supporters and resign, stating: “I’ve heard your anger.” No such luck for Sri Lanka, where party leadership is a lucrative lifetime career and parties are treated as personal property of the leaders.

Meanwhile, Starmer emphasised: “Whether you voted Labour or not, in fact, especially if you did not, I say to you directly, my Government will serve you. Politics can be a force for good. We will show that. We’ve changed the Labour Party and returned it to service and that is how we will govern. Country first, party second.” Admirable statesmanship from the new, all-powerful British Prime Minister, quite in contrast to Sri Lanka’s political legacy.

Given the unprecedented circumstances in which Ranil Wickremesinghe ascended to the presidency, the nation expected him to be the statesman that this country so badly needed, yet did not have. But, if the events of the last two years are taken into account, it is Sri Lanka’s misfortune that such a golden opportunity has also, yet again, been squandered at the altar of political opportunism. Rather than working towards nation renewal like his new British counterpart, Wickremesinghe, in typical style, has found it almost impossible to shed the temptation of petty politicking that has led this country to this sorry state.

Disappointing as it is, it is now up to the people to chart their own course for nation renewal through intelligent use of the ballot. In fact they have been patiently waiting for such an opportunity since July 2022. But indications are that even this fundamental right of the people has now become a plaything of a power-hungry regime that is clearly unwilling to let go. Events of just the past couple of months provide ample evidence as to why people have been forced to arrive at such a disconcerting conclusion, not to mention the unnecessary uncertainty and ambiguity on the way forward.

The first seemingly ‘innocent’ attempt at disregarding the people’s voice was the ‘invitation’ for all parties in Parliament to come together for the ‘sake of the nation’. But having sought such support, the continuing vilification and unrelenting attempts to break up those parties ensured there were no takers for the ‘invitation’.

Then came the tempting suggestion to abolish the executive presidency. However, smelling a rat, the combined Opposition and a sizeable chunk of MPs in the ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) made it clear that two-thirds support would require a firm undertaking that Parliament should be dissolved immediately thereafter. That was the end of that story.

Thereafter came the pronouncement by the United National Party’s (UNP) General Secretary that the President should be allowed to carry on for another two years sans any elections on the pretext of economic stability. That took away all pretensions of any noble intentions, exposing the subtle efforts for what they were: greed for power.

With the gloves now off and no takers for the bait, the regime seemingly resorted to its favourite pastime: political manoeuvring. The Executive’s attempts to appoint the President of the Court of Appeal to the Supreme Court – an individual who by no means matches up to the criteria of an unblemished record the post demands – followed by an attempt to extend the term of the Attorney General were both turned down by the Supreme Court and Constitutional Council (CC), respectively. Irked by this, the President argued that the CC came within the purview of the Executive, which contention has since been thrown out the window.

The next gamble was the creation of confusion with regard to the tenure of the presidency, citing conflicting clauses in the Constitution pertaining to the 19th Amendment that reduced the tenure of the presidency from six to five years. Ironically, this amendment was introduced by the Wickremesinghe-led administration of 2015, but it has seemingly taken quite some time for the ‘error’ to be noticed.

Now, with the seed of doubt planted, a little known ‘businessman’ has moved the apex court seeking a ruling on the exact tenure of the presidency. That the court has already given a ruling on the matter when the exact same question was referred to it by former President Maithripala Sirisena appears to have been conveniently ignored by the businessman.

While ‘never say die’ appears to be the guiding motto of the regime, the latest attempt at political trickery was announced by the very same man who wanted the President’s term to be extended by two years. The UNP General Secretary on Friday announced that the President had obtained Cabinet approval last week to ‘correct’ the conflicting clauses in the Constitution. Since this requires parliamentary approval, a new bill will have to be brought before the House wherein the public must be provided three weeks to file objections. With plenty of ‘businessmen’ willing to do the needful, the plan is not that difficult to fathom. 

Be that as it may, to describe the current President of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka as a political saint is as good as saying that pigs can fly. A renowned master manipulator whose command of the craft has been amply demonstrated by the manner in which he landed the presidency, the ruthlessness with which he has kept that office since, and the sheer crudity associated with efforts to extend that tenure notwithstanding grandstanding to the contrary all amount to well choreographed political chicanery.

Therefore, when the President claimed through a personal message on X and thereafter through his Media Division that he had nothing to do with the petition filed before the Supreme Court by the ‘businessman,’ the nation, now long used to similar ‘dummies,’ to borrow from rugby parlance, took it with a sack full of salt.

So now, while the apex court prepares to re-examine something it has already done before, the rest of the country cannot help but contemplate the dire consequences of this seemingly never-ending circus on this nation’s fragile economy. For, it is not too difficult for even an Ordinary Level student to comprehend the ramifications of the uncertainty and instability that all this is needlessly causing. It is forcing even the few prospective investors looking this way to do a U-turn. This is why Sri Lanka desperately needs to get its act together, which incidentally can only be done through the conducting of elections – both Presidential and General – as soon as possible. 

The comfort, security, and stability that both investors and lenders seek can only be delivered through the establishment of a government that enjoys the people’s mandate and support since it is they who will have to carry the cross for the sins of their leaders. Already being two years too late on that score, Sri Lanka can no longer afford to squander the few remaining opportunities it has to grab what the world has to offer, just because its leaders are obsessed with greed for power. 

It is about time that those in office, as well as those aspiring to take office, take a leaf or two from Keir Starmer’s book, because the ‘use by’ date of ‘by hook or by crook’ politics that politicians here have long been used to is now two years past.