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Political conspiracies or practical complications?

05 Sep 2022

  • Allegations and arguments abound, highlighting splits in national direction
By Sumudu Chamara   The last few days of the past week saw several interesting dialogues and heated arguments in Sri Lanka’s political arena, some of which even concern high-ranking public officials. Notably, while some parties seem to have split due to internal issues, members of some parties that have traditionally been opponents could be seen expressing similar opinions regarding matters of national importance in Parliament.   Conspiracy to sack CBSL Governor?   One of the main topics that heated up the political arena was Central Bank of Sri Lana (CBSL) Governor Dr. Nandalala Weerasinghe’s speech in the Parliament complex last week, during which he made damning statements about wrong political decisions that pushed the country towards the prevailing economic crisis, and the likelihood of the prevailing situation worsening to an unmanageable state and the gravity of it. Following the said statements, his remarks, and also his performance as the CBSL Governor were questioned by certain MPs and in response, MPs of several political parties defended Dr. Weerasinghe.  Speaking in Parliament in this regard, Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) MP and economist Dr. Harsha de Silva categorically denied allegations that Dr. Weerasinghe intentionally bankrupted the country. He pointed the finger at former CBSL Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal for misleading the country by providing inaccurate information about the country’s foreign reserves situation. “There are claims that the CBSL Governor intentionally bankrupted the country. Those claims are blatantly false,” he stressed.  Adding that when former Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa was questioned about the country’s foreign reserves, Cabraal answered the questions with false data, Dr. de Silva said: “According to the CBSL Governor’s presentation, for months, Sri Lanka’s usable foreign reserves had been limited to around $ 20-30 million. When questioned, former Minister Cabraal said that the country had $ 1,800, $ 1,900, and $ 2,100 as foreign reserves. He misled Parliament and the country and did not listen to us. I informed the then-Prime Minister that the said data was untrue and that the country was being misled.” He further claimed that he assisted former Finance Minister Ali Sabry PC, when the latter was puzzled as to why the country did not have the said amount of foreign reserves. He further said that despite the said situation, now, Sabry and Dr. Weerasinghe are being accused of bankrupting the country.  He added: “The Opposition Leader presented nine points, including avoiding disorderly default, immediately appointing global legal and financial advisors, and trying to go for a consent solicitation with our creditors to suspend and reschedule our loan repayments. He proposed beginning talks with creditors to get their consent to suspend loan repayments. Sabry did not have time to get consent, because Cabraal did not give a chance for Sabry or anyone else to do that.” Meanwhile, during a press briefing, SJB MP Thushara Indunil also raised similar concerns regarding the allegations against Dr. Weerasinghe and alleged that certain officials of the former Government concealed the truth about the country’s foreign reserves situation. “By the time of Dr. Weerasinghe’s appointment, persons such as Dr. P.B. Jayasundara, Cabraal, and S.R. Attygalle, who advised the former Government as economic experts, had already bankrupted the economy. We had been saying for around a year or two that the course of the economy was not right and that the necessary steps should be taken to rectify it. However, those concerns were not taken into account. Instead, these slow-witted rulers listened to the words of those officials. They claimed that there was no US dollar shortage. Dr. Weerasinghe is the person who took over after wrong decisions destroyed the economy.” He added that at a time the country’s economy has started stabilising, the said economic experts of the previous Government are returning to attack Dr. Weerasinghe and that it is unacceptable. What is more, he reminded the Government and the President of their duties to maintain the little economic stability the country has achieved. “Dr. Weerasinghe is not responsible for the country’s bankruptcy or the decisions that led to it. Those who made wrong decisions that led to the collapse of the economy should be punished and stolen assets should be taken back. The President could launch a programme to get back the stolen assets hidden in other countries. At a time the people have started breathing a sigh of relief and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has given the green light to go ahead with IMF assistance, these unwanted people are trying to revive Rajapaksa’s bankrupted politics and to turn the country into hell. Wickremesinghe was given Presidency not to protect Rajapaksas or to provide them with a place to play political games. This is applicable to Wickremesinghe too – he was not given a chance to resuscitate his bankrupted party.” However, it was not just Opposition MPs, MPs representing the governing party also came forth to defend Dr. Weerasinghe. Speaking of this matter in Parliament, Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) MP Duminda Dissayanake said: “In the context of rebuilding the country, many matters such as corruption and corrupt politicians are being discussed. Although there were ministers and chairmen under successive governments to manage these institutions, today, the CBSL Governor is being questioned as to why this is happening. Had we discussed these questions with the then-Finance Minster, Ministers, and the Finance Ministry Secretary, when our Government was in power, that Government would not have lost.” According to some, behind criticism against Dr. Weerasinghe’s competence, which they claimed was baseless, there is a conspiracy to sack him from the CBSL Governor position. These concerns were voiced mainly by SJB Leader and Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa in Parliament last week. He expressed strong disapproval of members of the Government with regard to the said criticism. “The CBSL Governor was criticised. Various allegations were levelled against him. It did not stop there; the governing party made statements that implied that the CBSL Governor took decisions that led to the country’s bankruptcy. The (members of the) governing party should have some agreement about the CBSL Governor. This is a conspiracy to get rid of the CBSL Governor and to appoint a friend (of the governing party) to that position.” Premadasa added that when it comes to rebuilding the country, all those in Parliament should have a basic understanding and consensus among them, especially among the President, Prime Minister, Finance Minister, and the CBSL Governor. He noted that the same should exist within the governing party. Referring to criticisms against the CBSL Governor, Premadasa opined: “It is because of this kind of drama that we cannot even think about an all-party Government.” He further spoke of the main Opposition Party’s role in looking into public finances and institutions: “Through the work of various committees, we are ready to support the right actions of the Government while sitting in the Opposition. In this very House, the incumbent President, as the then-Prime Minister, stated that the Chairmanship of the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) and Committee on Public Accounts (COPA) would be given to the Opposition, and it was agreed on. Do not make such statements when everything collapses, and then renege on the word when the (economic) situation gets better. Doing so sets a wrong precedent.”   Lessons from the ‘aragalaya’   Meanwhile, Dissanayake further spoke of the importance of the Government  grasping the message the “aragalaya” (struggle) conveyed, while also taking legal action against illegal acts that occurred during the “aragalaya”. He said that failure to take steps to address the issues that led to the “aragalaya” would create a situation that is more difficult to handle. He observed: “The ‘aragalaya’ has been controlled. I am not saying whether it is right or wrong. We must penalise the culprits within the ‘aragalaya’ movement. However, do not forget the best part of the ‘aragalaya’. The ‘aragalaya’ had an objective – it demanded a system change. The ‘aragalaya’ created a constructive discussion surrounding matters such as whether loss-making (public) institutions should be allowed to function the same way, and how to extirpate corruption in the public sector and in politics. Do not forget that although we can move about freely again, if the objectives of the ‘aragalaya’ are forgotten, our children will someday have to face the same issue again.” In this context, he said, the President, Prime Minister, Government, and the Opposition Parties should come forward to make the said system change.  He spoke of what he said were inadequacies within the “aragalaya” movement: “One arrestee of the ‘aragalaya’ says that the new Government is asking everyone over the age of 18 to open tax files. They cannot say such a thing within the ‘aragalaya’, as the ‘aragalaya’ should encourage the opening of a tax file to strengthen the economy when there are a lot of people who are not paying taxes.” What is more, he spoke of the recent amendments with regard to the age of retirement in the public sector, which decreased the age from 65 to 60 years. Adding that this was aimed at allowing the new generation to improve and get better chances within the sector, Dissanayake said that the same theory should be applicable to Parliament and political parties as well. During his address, he urged that politicians too should adopt a system of retiring at a certain age, in order to give the younger generation an opportunity at higher levels of politics and to rid the country of conservative thinking.   SLFP Constitutional amendment   Another highlight in Sri Lanka’s political arena was the controversial amendment to Sri Lanka Freedom Party’s (SLFP) Constitution, which came just before SLFP’s 71st anniversary. Many senior SLFP members criticised this amendment, which gives powers to the SLFP Chairman to sack any party member, and they called it an undemocratic move. When questioned by the media, some senior party members refused to comment on the matter; their only response was: “Talk to the professors (within the party)”. Senior party member Nimal Siripala de Silva confirmed that a Constitutional amendment aiming to give powers to the SLFP Chairman to remove any party member was passed and that the majority of MPs including himself opposed the proposal. He went on to say that despite this opposition, certain other members, including professors within the party, supported the proposal. He lamented that the fact that democracy within the SLFP has been lost is tragic. Another senior party member, Chamara Sampath Dassanayake, said: “Other members disapproved of this decision, claiming that this amendment is tantamount to bringing dictatorship into the party. A majority of party members that supported this amendment hold various positions (within the party).” Senior party member Lasantha Alagiyawanna, meanwhile, opined that this decision might have an adverse impact on the party. He added that such an amendment should not be a priority in the present context. “Without the people’s approval (the party), strengthening of any Constitution is pointless. The main duty and responsibility we have is to take measures to attract people to the party. In addition, in the present context, the party’s Constitution is of no impotence to the people. Their priority at this juncture is not strengthening the Party’s Constitution but finding solutions to their issues. The party should be committed to that, as that is what is important to the people. This kind of inappropriate decision, that does not match the present context, could be a reason to be rejected by the people.” He opined that this decision is democratic.  In response to these concerns, former President and SLFP Chairman Maithripala Sirisena, after the meeting at which the amendment was passed, said that this decision was based on requests he received from party supporters to introduce a stronger party Constitution that strengthens the process of taking disciplinary actions against party members. “Party supporters and senior members of the party alleged that I am not strengthening the party and that I am not enforcing disciplinary rules. In some cases, when we or those against us went to court, some Judges stated that the SLFP Constitution is chaotic and that there are many issues (in the Constitution) as far as taking disciplinary actions is concerned. Accordingly, I appointed an expert committee which included five PCs, obtained a report, and took action to incorporate the report’s findings into the party’s Constitution.” Despite the claims by senior party members that the amendment was opposed by many, Sirisena said that the party’s Central Working Committee unanimously approved the amendment and that not a single vote was cast against it. “It was carried out very democratically,” he said, adding that the amendment merely allows the Constitution to expedite disciplinary actions, which, at present, involves a drawn-out process. Most of these discussions concern the country’s economy, which is in a dire situation, and it has been noted that the actions of politicians, especially in the case of the CBSL Governor, have a direct impact on the economy. As was noted by several politicians, it is crucial to prioritise national interests over political or personal interests, at least until the economy can get on its feet. Will politicians unite in order to do that, and whether they will walk the talk, is yet to be found out.   


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