Monday 28th April, 2025

The truth becomes the first casualty of any propaganda campaign, especially in Sri Lankan politics, which exemplifies the Macbethian paradox—fair is foul, and foul is fair; politicians of all hues have mastered the art of stretching the truth to the breaking point ahead of elections and duping the public.

The truth is distorted or exaggerated in such a way during election campaigns that it becomes hardly distinguishable from an outright lie in most cases, as evident from claims and counterclaims at the ongoing propaganda rallies, where mistruths, half-truths, lies and about-turns have become the order of the day. Interestingly, some self-righteous candidates and their leaders are accusing their political rivals of uttering lies, while they themselves are lying their way through, so much so that one is justified in saying, “Lies, damned lies, and campaign rhetoric.”

There has been a real hullabaloo over a statement made by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake at an NPP election rally recently. He said something in Sinhala to the effect that the government would readily allocate state funds to the local councils to be won by the NPP, as he could vouch for the integrity of only the candidates of his own party, and where other councils were concerned, the government would have to exercise stringent oversight in reviewing requests for funds to guard against malpractices in a manner that might lead to delays.

The Opposition has amplified the subliminal message in the President’s statement, making a hue and cry over it. Its speakers thunder from political platforms, claiming that the President has threatened to stop state funds to the councils to be won by the parties other than the NPP. They have gone so far as to lodge a complaint with the Election Commission against the President and the NPP, and declared that they are capable of running local government authorities under their own steam without seeking funds from the government!

When the presidential statement at issue, which borders on a warning, is viewed under the microscope, a veiled threat becomes discernible in its subtext; however, the President and the government could have defended it effectively on the grounds of their accountability for ensuring financial probity in local councils. They should have quoted the President’s statement in question verbatim in support of their argument. But President Dissanayake has since changed his position in a bid to obfuscate the issue, claiming that he said he will not allow corrupt politicians to steal state funds and therefore local government bodies reeking of corruption will not get any tax money, which has to be frugally managed. He has, true to form, taken the moral high ground.

The Opposition has failed to point out that the government is relying on individual politicians and not systems as such to battle corruption in local councils, and the President’s statement at issue is tainted with petitio principii or circular reasoning; the President has assumed that only NPP candidates are honest and used that assumption to support his argument that the councils under their control will be free from corruption and therefore qualified to receive state funds.

There are already systems in place to tackle bribery and corruption in state institutions, and if they are used to deal with the people’s representatives and officials indulging in corruption, local councils will be free from corruption regardless of the political parties controlling them. There is a need for stronger legal and enforcement mechanisms, and it is up to the government to introduce them, as a national priority. Those who seek approval for building plans, etc., are at the mercy of local council heads and officials, who cause unnecessary delays so as to have their palms greased. The public should be able to report such instances to a higher authority and obtain relief reasonably fast.

Corruption is colourless, to begin with; it is neither green nor blue nor red nor maroon. It transcends party lines and ideological affiliations. Hence the need for Sri Lanka to battle the colourless evil by putting in place robust mechanisms and ensuring the strict enforcement of anti-corruption laws to achieve that noble end.

When conservative Pope Benedict XVI stepped down in 2013, citing frailty of body, the Catholic world braced for a like-minded successor. All eyes were on Italian Cardinal Angelo Scola, then 71, a theological twin of Benedict and the bookmakers’ favourite. But as the age-old adage in Rome goes, “He who enters the conclave as pope, exits as cardinal.”

When white smoke emerged from Sistine Chapel, the bells of St. Peter’s rang and the words “Habemus Papam” echoed across Vatican, it wasn’t Scola who emerged on the balcony, but the football loving cardinal from Argentina – Jorge Mario Bergoglio. Unknown to most beyond Buenos Aires, the man from the ends of the earth would soon become the beating heart of the Catholic Church.

From the outset, it was clear that this would be no ordinary pontificate. Instead of donning the grand papal clothes, the new Pope stepped out in a plain white cassock, as if to say, “let me walk with you, not above you.” And in a moment of breathtaking humility, before blessing the faithful, he knelt down, bowed his head and asked them to bless him. The world witnessed not a showman cloaked in ritual, but a shepherd clothed in grace.

He chose the name Francis – after the saint of Assisi, who embraced poverty and loved nature. No Pope before him had borne the name. It was not a name picked randomly, but a vow to the poor, to peace, and to simplicity. For 12 years, Francis lived what he preached, endearing himself to millions and became the most beloved pontiff overtaking John Paul II.

As head of the Jesuits in Argentina and later as Archbishop of Buenos Aires, he was known to travel by train, mingling with commuters, rubbing shoulders with the working class. Upon assuming the Chair of St. Peter, he left behind the opulence of the Apostolic Palace and took up residence in a modest guesthouse room. The bulletproof papal limousine was also replaced with an ordinary car. It was a reminder to the world and the Church, that one cannot preach the Gospel from a golden throne while the flock is lost in the wilderness.

Even in death, he remained true to form, requesting a simple funeral, free of pomp and circumstance, in stark contrast to centuries-old Vatican tradition.

Pope Francis lifted his voice for the voiceless. He was the trumpet for the immigrant, the refugee and the outcast. In meeting halls of power – from the White House to the United Nations – he urged leaders to show compassion. His message found a receptive ear in Joe Biden, the first Catholic President of the United States since John F. Kennedy. But when Donald Trump took a hard-line stance on deportations, the Pope was quick to pen a sharply worded appeal, reminding the world that every soul is sacred, every migrant a child of God.

Within the Church, Francis was a reformer unafraid to rock the boat. He opened the doors of communion to divorced Catholics, ruffling feathers among traditionalists. He declared that homosexuality is not a sin, echoing Christ’s own words, “Judge not, that you be not judged.”

He gave women greater roles within the Church’s hierarchy – appointing them to senior positions within the Vatican and amending Cannon Law to allow them to serve as lectors and distribute Holy Communion. When asked about the shift, the Pope, with his trademark wit, quipped, “They certainly manage the finances better than men.”

In his quest to decentralize power, Francis broke the mold of predictable cardinal appointments. No longer was it a given that bishops of major European dioceses would receive the red hat. Instead, he elevated humble, pastoral leaders from far-flung corners of the world – Papua New Guinea, Tonga, and Haiti – redefining what it meant to be a Prince of the Church.

He also took bold steps to clean the Vatican’s tarnished image. When Cardinal Giovanni Angelo Becciu was embroiled in a financial scandal involving a failed London real estate deal, Francis asked for his resignation. Becciu would go on to become the first cardinal ever convicted by a criminal court. It was a clear sign that accountability had found a home within the hallowed halls of the Vatican.

Francis was not just a pontiff in name. He was a shepherd after God’s own heart. Like the Good Samaritan, he tended to the broken. Like the prodigal’s father, he welcomed the lost. And like Christ Himself, he did not shy away from overturning the tables when righteousness demanded it.

As he returns to his Creator, the College of Cardinals will gather to elect a new successor. Of those 135 Cardinals, 108 were appointed by Francis himself. While papal predictions are a fool’s errand, the writing on the wall suggests that his successor will carry the torch of humility, justice, and mercy.

The curtain falls not on an era of power and pageantry, but on one of pastoral care and prophetic courage. Pope Francis may be gone, but the seeds he sowed in the vineyard of the Lord will continue to bear fruit in due season.

Saturday 26th April, 2025

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, who is leading the NPP’s local government (LG) polls campaign from the front, while urging his rivals to sink their political differences and help achieve national progress, would have the public believe that winning the upcoming mini polls will be a walk in the park for his party. He is being overconfident and overoptimistic.

The NPP’s huge victory in last year’s general election is still fresh, and therefore the government is thought to have a better chance of winning the LG polls, but nothing is so certain as the unexpected in politics. Whoever would have thought Maithripala Sirisena would beat Mahinda Rajapaksa in the 2015 presidential race?

The fact that President Dissanayake has had to address even what are generally considered village level meetings in support of the NPP candidates indicates that the government is aware that winning the LG elections will not be a cakewalk. He and his party are doing everything possible to consolidate their power by scoring another electoral win. The Opposition has lodged complaints with the Election Commission against the President and the NPP over alleged election law violations.

What we are witnessing on both sides of the political divide are standard election practices, including an exchange of allegations, and bellowing rhetoric. It is doubtful whether anyone will pay much heed to politicians’ claims, counterclaims and pledges. However, something that President Dissanayake has said about the Opposition is of interest.

President Dissanayake has given some unsolicited advice to the Opposition. He is reported to have said at a recent meeting in Puttalam that the Opposition will never be able to make a comeback unless it mends its ways, and the only way it can turn the tables on his government is to better the NPP. The subtext of his gratuitous advice is that the NPP is far too superior to the Opposition and attempting to outdo it is an exercise in futility. He is entitled to his view. After all, every President has had a very high opinion of his or her government since 1978.

However, there occur situations where the Opposition does not have to better the government in power to make a comeback. We have witnessed instances where massive protest votes propelled weak Opposition parties to power. The UNP’s mammoth victory in 1977 is a case in point. The same goes for the victory of the SLFP-led People’s Alliance (PA) in 1994. It was circumstances rather than anything else that led to the meteoric rise of Chandrika Kumaratunga in national politics and the PA’s victory.

In 2015, the UNP-led UNF won a parliamentary election not because it was any better than the UPFA; its victory was due to the people’s resentment at the Rajapaksa rule. Gotabaya Rajapaksa won the presidency in 2019 because the UNF government had become extremely unpopular, and President Sirisena had cooked his goose by neglecting national security and failing to prevent the Easter Sunday carnage (2019).

The NPP, which had only three seats in the previous Parliament, came to power with a steamroller majority, not because the people had any high regard for its leaders or their capabilities, but because they were extremely furious at the SLPP government, which had become a metaphor for corruption, abuse of power, etc., and, most of all, ruined the economy, causing untold hardships to them. The people found themselves in what may be called an any-port-in-a-storm situation, and the NPP tapped their anger effectively and infused them with hope by making as many promises as possible. The challenge before the NPP government is to live up to the people’s expectations.

If the NPP government makes the same mistakes as its immediate predecessor, the SLPP, and ruins the economy, the resentful public will take to the streets, demanding its resignation, and the vociferous leaders of the incumbent dispensation will have to head for the hills as fast as their legs can carry them. Therefore, instead of proffering unsolicited advice to the Opposition and indulging in self-righteous pontification, the NPP leaders had better tread cautiously, avoiding the mistakes of its predecessors.