Roshan in crooks’ crosshairs

Wednesday 8th November, 2023

It has become manifestly clear once again that all state institutions are geared to protect the interests of the corrupt and not those of the public. When Sports Minister Roshan Ranasinghe plucked up the courage to sack the Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) Executive Committee and appoint an interim committee headed by former Test Captain Arjuna Ranatunga, the cricket-crazy public exulted, but while welcoming his bold action yesterday we warned that the crooks concerned would strike back with might and main. Latest developments on the political and legal fronts show that the corrupt are planning an all-out counterattack with the help of the powers that be.

Having pitted himself against a gang of powerful crooks and incurred the wrath of their political masters, Minister Ranasinghe is now a marked target. Cricket always gains when SLC is run by interim committees. But the appointment of the current interim committee has run into stiff resistance from some government bigwigs themselves. A Cabinet sub-committee has been appointed to look into the gazette issued by Minister Ranasinghe appointing the SLC interim committee and some other matters. This is widely considered a move aimed at restoring the status quo ante at SLC. The government however has baulked at forcing Minister Ranasinghe to abolish the newly-appointed interim committee because it is aware that he and Arjuna have the public on their side. But the ruling party politicians who protect the corrupt know more than one way to shoe a horse. Minister Ranasinghe had better look over his shoulder!

Ink was still wet on the gazette announcing Minister Ranasinghe’s action to cleanse SLC, which is Sri Lanka’s Augean stables, when the government declared that he had done so unbeknownst to President Ranil Wickremesinghe. It may be recalled that in 2002, Wickremesinghe, as the Prime Minister, signed a ceasefire agreement with LTTE leader Prabhakaran without the then President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga’s knowledge. Unlike that truce pact which stood the LTTE in good stead, what Minister Ranasinghe has done is beneficial to the country. Is it that a minister cannot take action to serve the interests of the public in keeping with powers vested in him or her, without obtaining permission from the President?

Minister Ranasinghe has proved that he is made of sterner stuff. He has gone on record as saying that he can have the SLC bigwigs incarcerated for 15 years or more for their rackets if the President, the Attorney General and the IGP assist him in the task. It is hoped that they will help him save cricket from the corrupt instead of slapping obstacles in his path. The Auditor General has exposed specific instances of financial irregularities at SLC, and Minister Ranasinghe deserves everyone’s help to ensure that the culprits are made to face the full force of the law.

Sri Lanka, however, is a land like no other—for the corrupt. Whenever crooks find themselves up a creek, the ruling party politicians who benefit from their largesse leap to their defence. The government is taking great pains to get a bunch of crooks off the hook in the Health Ministry as well. Irrefutable evidence is now available to prove some very serious allegations against a group of officials who have facilitated substandard drug/equipment imports and lined their pockets. It has also been found that some Health Ministry panjandrums were involved in a drug racket where a company sold the government a stock of immunoglobulin, claiming to have imported it; investigations have revealed that the drug was produced locally, but Health Minister Dr. Ramesh Pathirana has said facilities are not available here for it to be manufactured! Strangely, no action has been taken against the officials concerned. Perhaps, the government is wary of having them arrested lest it should end up opening a can of worms; no racketeer can operate in the state sector without the backing of ruling party politicians. Minister Pathirana has chosen not to confront the corrupt so that he can avoid trouble, unlike Minister Ranasinghe, who has stuck his neck out. Hats off to Ranasinghe!

The government has not cared to mend its ways despite last years’ popular uprising. It continues to shield crooks. No wonder its approval rating has plummeted, according to a Verite Research opinion survey, and public anger is welling up.