Opinion

Is this a‘Lost Cause’?

Published

3 years ago

2022/05/9

Thilina Walpola

By Rienzie Wijetilleke

rienzietwij@gmail.com

There are many reasons Sri Lanka is in this tragic situation and we all agree that it has been down to several decades of poor planning and mismanagement. However, the scatterbrain, ad hoc manner in which the present administration managed the country’s economic and monetary policy is pathetic and must, on its own, necessitate an independent investigation.

Having been centre stage in the financial sector for over 50 years, working under several Central Bank Governors; in my capacity I have liaised with virtually every Finance Minister and Treasury Secretary during that time. I can tell you, with confidence, that at no point during that period have I witnessed such an ignorant, unprincipled set of ministers, secretaries and officials whose lack of courage has led Sri Lanka down this path.

Since all meetings at the highest level will maintain recorded minutes, I propose these minutes are studied to ascertain the thought process and deliberation that went into the myriad of decisions that led the country to the brink of total collapse. The CBSL’s monetary policy must be closely studied, what drove the decisions to print excessive money, to spend billions controlling an exchange rate at an unrealistic peg, to spend vital reserves on paying bond holders, instead of keeping the economy running, to float the LKR instantly without any contingent plans. The budgetary collapse was clear from the outset, the CBSL Road Map: a complete sham. What was the logic behind not negotiating with the IMF until a disorderly default was at the door? The people must demand answers to these questions. After the economic fire-fighting is completed, if the next administration fails to adequately investigate these decisions and processes, including forensic audits into those that gains super-margins by investing in ISBs.

There should have been a long list of resignations and an equally long line of officers and staff, from within the Finance Ministry and the CBSL ready to give evidence against the blatantly politicized decision-making at these institutions. Why did they not come forward when common sense was being ignored. It’s seems the degeneration and rot of the corrupt policies has permeated deep into the system. Decent, honest, professional people, failed.

What was perhaps most disappointing and disheartening was the complete lack of integrity shown by many corporate leaders, some of whom I still regard as friends. We even saw recently some Titans of industry sitting before the COPE and stating that their internal expansion decisions were made in ignorance of the seriousness of the country’s economic crisis. Their reactions to questioning from an MP, a representative of the people, smacked of an arrogance that even they could ill-afford at this moment.

As a corporate citizen during my career, whenever the government began to consider policies I felt would be detrimental to the country and the economy, I did not hesitate to voice those doubts and reservations whenever the opportunity presented itself. During my time, my Chairman, Directors and shareholders appealed to me to restrict my criticism of the government, but I simply said what I felt was right. I have clashed with many Finance Ministers and Treasury Officers. I have argued and debated with CBSL Governors. Those disagreements, although constructive, seem so small considering some of the policies we have witnessed over the past two years.

I was astonished to witness powerful industrialists and business leaders cheering on policy formulations that were clearly incoherent. Some of Sri Lanka’s business community jumped on numerous committees and boards without considering the overall picture, not checking whether they were engaged in making a positive contribution or whether their names, their personal brands or those of their organisations were being taken advantage of, for political mileage. Their acquiescence of and silence regarding many illogical decisions that were clearly not in the ‘national interest’ was very surprising. Perhaps it is to do with the term ‘National Interest’ and how one defines it. If businesses believe that their success guarantees the progress of their people and communities, then the focus will always be on business and success will be defined by this. I noted that many share prices were not only rising but were breaking records when inflation was ticking up and many were already in queues for essentials. The business community that I used to be a part of, must come forward and demand an urgent change in policy and political course. Our dependency on foreign capital flows and USD borrowings has been discussed to death, however solutions such as diversifying our tea exports, growing the rubber sector and encouraging entrepreneurs, is simply campaign jargon. These are not substantive ideas.

I am on record stating that the most recent Governor of the CBSL was not only the least-qualified person to hold that post but is also largely responsible for the politicisation of the Central Bank and of Monetary policy. Officers, such as Dr. P B Jayasundera, who was once banned by the Supreme Court from holding public office, and numerous other individuals in high positions, had records that should have disqualified them from consideration for those posts. Yet, not only were they appointed, but many still survive.

A Chartered Accountant cannot be a CBSL Govenor. A person considered for an appointment at the CBSL must be highly qualified in that specific field and should have a mountain of experience, with a long history of displaying expertise and crucially, integrity. I have to say, that many of the recent appointments to some of the highest positions in our land have been grossly under-qualified for those positions. Just take a look at the qualifications of the Ministers of Singapore. If we do not have public servants of that calibre, we will be left with policy outcomes that reflect this lack of quality.

We want to be Singapore, without utilising that level of public servant and politician, they do exist, but more often than not, they are pushed to the margins. We want our people to be entrepreneurs and to innovate but we don’t want to pay teachers and improve schools to teach our children. Looking at the political sphere, I see that the Colombo electorate is divided. This is the result of the UNP’s disintegration, it was the main party that was supposed to represent Colombo. The UNP leadership’s role in the Easter disaster, and their lethargic period of administration, led to the Colombo vote splintering. Wimal Weerawansa and Udaya Gammanpila had over 400,000 votes between them! Considering the future administration, there are some talented politicians in the Opposition that will need to be called for duty. The Leader of the SJB has very obvious support around the country and his recent speeches have shown his connection with the people in the villages. While I sense his popularity in Colombo is nowhere near as strong, the SJB has some diligent and capable MPs, including Dr. Harsha De Silva, Eran Wickramaratne and Harin Fernando. The popularity of these politicians, in urban areas in Colombo and beyond should allow the SJB to form a government with a few coalition partners. However, in order for the SJB to enhance its credibility, it must resist short-cuts to power and distance itself from the failed political establishment and its representatives.

Some of those representatives, who now sit as ‘independents’, are largely responsible for cheerleading the policies that led to the present disaster, they have no political capital now and this will soon become more obvious to them, they have let down their own electorates and now they are letting down the entire country just to ensure their own political survival.

My generation’s greatest fear is fast materialising. I was born while Sri Lanka was still a colony and I remember perfectly well the potential our country had. To see leadership waste opportunities to make tangible improvements to our people’s lives, saddens many of us that made the sacrifices we felt were necessary for our country to prosper. Sri Lanka was meant to be the next success story from the Asian region. Many from my generation, including me, face terrible sadness during the final phase of our lives, because we see that a few people with personal and narrow agendas, have shaped Sri Lanka into a shadow of what it once promised. To see so many intelligent and talented youth leave Sri Lanka is truly heartbreaking. Many of us stayed back to make, honest contributions to our nation building project.

Our only hope seems to be this young generation that has come forward to demand a change, not just a change in the people, but in the “system”, in the way of doing things.

I hope they have the strength to see it through to the end, I hope they succeed where my generation was unable to. With the youth leading the way, no cause is lost.

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Opinion

Bitter truth about laws and animal welfare

Published

7 hours ago

2024/11/20

Sahan Weerasooriya

Draft Animal Welfare Bill
National Dog Spay and Rabies Eradication Programme
Draft Animal Welfare Bill

By 2023 when the Draft Animal Welfare Bill was taken up for its first reading in Parliament, it has been made into a legal mess, denying legal protection to animals from cruelties.

In June 2023 our Coalition intervened and by March 2024 we got Parliamentary Sectoral Oversight Committee (SOC) to approve amendments that would make this bill exemplary, offering legal protection to all animals from cruelties, coupled with fines increased from Rs. 100,000 to 250,000- 500,000 to Rs. 5 million for animal abuse, with the fines doubling for abuse of pregnant animals.

But even after that Constitutional intervention and clear instructions to the relevant Ministry by the SOC to include the approved amendments, the Bill was prepared by that Ministry for the Second Reading in Parliament, dropping many crucial PARLIAMENTARY SOC-APPROVED AMENDMENTS.

Fortunately for the Animals of Sri Lanka, the Draft Bill was not taken up for the Second Reading.

The Parliament stands dissolved.

Attention President, Minister of Agriculture and Minister of Justice: This draft Bill must be presented in Parliament again ONLY after including the SOC-APPROVED AMENDMENTS.

Anyone trying to scuttle the process to pass a Bill that comprehensively provides legal protection to animals citing ANY reason, cannot have animal welfare in their hearts and minds.

2) The National Dog Spay and Rabies Eradication Programme

All one has to do is to travel round Sri Lanka to witness the enormous numbers of ownerless dogs, some in shocking conditions, to judge how “efficient and sustainable result-oriented” the National Dog Spay and Rabies Eradication Programme has been, after functioning under the Health Ministry with contract veterinarians for 15 years since 2008 till now, at a budgetary allocation ranging from Rs.100 million to Rs. 280 million annually.

Right now Rs. 200 million has been allocated to this fruitless, unmonitored, unevaluated activity, to SUSTAIN A BUSSINESS and not an accountable programme.

The move to have this programme executed by the ONLY State Entity that is responsible for handling and eradicating zoonotic diseases, the Department of Animal Production and Health (DAPH), having recruited 500 additional veterinarians, was scuttled in 2019, and the Programme was taken back to the Ministry of Health, a State entity responsible for diseases that afflict humans and not animals and hence has no Veterinarians, for BUSINESS AS USUAL.

Attention President, Minister of Health, and Minister of Livestock: This programme must be immediately vested in the DAPH so it can be made into a scientifically executed, accountable, sustainable-results-generating programme that can be monitored and evaluated regularly.

Such a scientific, professional, and systematic DAPH-executed accountable programme, coupled with Owned Dog Registration will see significant results in two years towards zero dog population growth and dog rabies control towards eradication.

CPAPA – SL (The Coalition for a Pro-Animal Protection Act – Sri Lanka)

Opinion

Landslide victories

Published

1 day ago

2024/11/19

Sahan Weerasooriya

by Chula Goonasekera
Nagananda Kodithuwakku

President AKD and the NPP deserve applause and heartfelt congratulations for their organisation, information gathering, and dissemination of a vision that resonates with the people. They have successfully created an enormous wave of funding and support, culminating in a decisive victory over the corrupt factions that have contributed to the destruction of our nation and motherland. The NPP’s anti-corruption message resonated deeply with voters who have suffered across many sectors of society, including the economy, education, healthcare, and nutrition. The public trust generated by this movement has led to an exemplary landslide victory for the NPP in this general election.

However, as voters, we must remain mindful that Sri Lanka has witnessed landslide election results in 1970, 1977, 2010, and 2020—all of which ultimately resulted in a landslide toward the nation’s ill-being, leaving the country burdened with massive debts, corruption, indiscipline, brain drain, and economic collapse.

What is ironic in 2024 is that this landslide victory may be one of the most significant of the century. However, it also calls for critical reflection. For the first time, even Jaffna voted in favour of the NPP. This could indicate the beginning of the end of the divisive politics that have historically exploited racial and religious divisions. Perhaps this marks the dawn of a new, more unified political landscape—one that promotes a united Sri Lanka as one nation working toward an equal society across every corner of our motherland.

Despite the landslide, we must be fully aware of the potential for disinformation if proper actions and preventive measures are not taken. The constitutional gates of covert and overt political corruption remain open while, as a nation, we lack the compensatory capacity to face another political or financial crisis. Therefore, we must remain vigilant and ensure the continuity of national oversight to keep our new parliament and president on track despite the many distractions that could hinder their efforts for national freedom and development. One key strategy is to remain non-aligned but work with external forces through clear, transparent, and fair agreements that prioritise national benefit.

In this context, the priority for the NPP should be to make the Judiciary and the Bribery Commission independent, supported by a robust quality assurance system and a clear definition of ‘contempt of court’ to embed accountability. No national institution—especially the judiciary—can thrive without accountability and transparency. A recent example from the UK, the Post Office Scandal, underscores this point: a national service organisation made wrongful decisions that destroyed the lives of many innocent people, wrongly labelling them as criminals. A documentary exposing this injustice was widely circulated in the media, leading to justice for many victims, some of whom were no longer alive to witness it. In Sri Lanka’s current legal environment, such exposure could easily be misconstrued as contempt of court, with all involved potentially facing jail time.

An independent Judiciary and Bribery Commission, free from political interference, can be achieved through a parliamentary act requiring a two-thirds majority. This is paramount and should be implemented at the earliest opportunity to prevent politics from undermining legitimate processes. Such reforms will help resolve the deadlock that has stifled progress—particularly in addressing political corruption, including linked severe offences such as rape and murder. Furthermore, these reforms will clarify the constitutional changes necessary to prevent the legitimisation of political corruption, enabling the cleanup of a constitution that has been manipulated countless times to allow corrupt politicians to act with impunity despite blatant violations of good governance.

Opinion

Srinivasan believed in Sri Lanka’s true potential: An appreciation

Published

1 day ago

2024/11/19

Sahan Weerasooriya

Historical ties between Sri Lanka and India date back to the Ramayana era and the visionary missions of the Great Mauryan Emperor Ashoka. The emperor tasked his own son, Arahant Mahinda, and daughter, Bhikkhuni Sangamitta, with spreading the teachings of Gautama Buddha (dhamma), laying the foundation in the island nation of Lanka, probably visualising its potential in cultivating a unique culture.

In 1977, Sri Lanka opened its economy while our great neighbour India had a closed economy. The Indian Bank, a wholly owned entity of the Government of India, decided to set up the bank’s first offshore banking unit in Sri Lanka. The unit became the first Foreign Currency Banking Unit (FCBU) owned by a foreign bank in Sri Lanka and started operations in 1979.

The bank appointed the young banker V Srinivasan to head the FCBU unit in Colombo, which led to many transformational changes in banking and entrepreneurial relationships between the two countries. Late V Srinivasan had the rare opportunity to leave his footprint, being the only officer serving as the CEO of Indian Bank’s two overseas branches in Sri Lanka and Singapore.

The Indian Bank’s FCBU unit raised foreign currencies and arranged investments in the Katunayake Free Trade Zone and several other BOI-approved projects. Under Mr. V Srinivasan’s leadership, many projects were financed, including the first multi-purpose apartment and shopping complex in Kollupitiya, and value-added rubber and textile manufacturing projects in the Free Trade Zone in Katunayake. These projects enabled industrial technological know-how to flow into Sri Lanka. The Indian Bank recognised V Srinivasan’s leadership and promoted him to the bank’s CEO in the Colombo branch in 1985, thus managing the bank’s decades-old domestic operations specialising in international trade. During this period, he identified the true potentials in the Sri Lankan economy, such as financing value addition and branding of Ceylon Tea, and financing the construction of a glass-bottomed multipurpose boat as a tourist attraction.

Unfortunately, all the innovative projects came to a grinding halt with the July 1983 riots in Sri Lanka. Although the bank’s assets were subject to many risks impacting viable operations, V Srinivasan demonstrated his kindness by saving the bank’s vital intellectual capital, the human resource, from destitution and distress because of the ruthless communal riots in Sri Lanka. His passion for spotting talent and his caring attitude towards the well-being of staff probably made him the bank’s youngest General Manager, leading Human Resources prior to his retirement from the bank in 2011.

This writer was fortunate enough to sense and learn the social orientation of the business of banking as a budding banker under his stewardship. During his tenure, I had the opportunity to engage in negotiations as a young trade unionist. Our friendship continued even after both of us left the services of the Indian Bank for many decades. The last time I met Mr. V Srinivasan, his wife Kalpana, and his son Prasanna and family was while he was holidaying in Sri Lanka in 2010, catching up with beautiful memories. Mr. Srinivasan passed away at the age of 73 on 9th November 2024 in Chennai. May his departed soul rest in peace. Om Shanti.

Jayasri Priyalal