Socks pulled knee high; advice to smirk at

Cass means here the metaphorical socks of government servants in general. Particularly in the last couple of months many officers in government departments were not working even at half or quarter steam when they really should be at full steam when at their office desks, doing their work with as much speed and power as possible, as the idiom defines.

Many persons who went to get work done at a government office were treated with the least amount of courtesy, nay outright rudeness; were sent from pillar (this officer) to post (that officer) with much time wasted accompanied by frustration. In the good old days, when almost all did the job they were paid to do, government officials were named public servants. Then the rot set in, inflated by overstaffing in most offices, which meant work was passed from one to another, dis-service rather than due service given.

Now, with the larger system changed by the election of a new President and the appointment of an efficient PM and the other sole Cabinet Minister, work systems have changed all for the better. Two examples to prove my point.

A person, on behalf of a future tourist friend of mine, went to a certain office to get info on permits to visit places of cultural heritage in the country. He was greeted as Mahathaya and all his queries answered well and fully, so he emerged in no time satisfied; surprised, too, at the service he got.

A niece returned from a holiday in the UK on an Emirates flight, which disgorged about 300 at the Katunayake airport. Coming in from the duty-free shop she saw long queues at the entry visa processing area. Soon, a superior officer came along, waved her to follow him and, hey presto, extra cubicles with visa stamping officers appeared, so totally the desks added to around ten.

She was out of the airport in no time, after having been given very polite service and warm welcome smiles. Remember the queues formed when the new visa issuing system was started by some foreign conglomerate under Minister of National Security, Tiran Alles? The loud protest of an incoming Sri Lankan went viral on social media.

Usually, this euphoric state lasts a couple of months following the installation of a new government and the inertia and laissez faire attitude of public servants returns. We expect not this time. We feel the change in attitude and work ethic will continue. Did not President A.K Dissanayake address persons of a certain workplace and tell them in no uncertain terms it had to be work or be sent out?

Veteran politician’s recent advice

Heard and read ex-President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s advice to the public to cast their votes in favour of experienced politicians at the November general elections.

Good advice from an experienced politician but why the resulting smirk as expressed in my title? I quote RW from the news item in The Island of Monday 21: “In these difficult times it is vital that we have leaders in parliament who know how to handle an economic crisis.” He urges voters “to think across party-lines to support candidates who worked alongside him in the past two years as they played a key role in the recovery process and have the necessary experience. Underscoring the strength of the coalition that supported him at the last presidential election (sic in capital letters) he said: ‘I took over the leadership of the country at a time it had declared bankruptcy. At this juncture politicians of the UNP, Podu Jana Eksath Peramuna and SLFP came forward to shoulder that responsibility with me. They are now united under the New Democratic Front in the parliamentary race. They have proven experience the current times demand from them as members of parliament.’”

Approval anathema to us Ordinaries

Why does the expression ‘losing one’s marbles’ come to mind? Why does Cassandra use the adjectives unseemly, inappropriate, foolish, unwanted, to qualify ‘advice’?

There are so many coalitions of parties formed that Cass had to refer up membership of the New Democratic Front (NDF). Found the following top in the national list of the NDF: Dinesh Gunawardena, former speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena, Faizer Mustapha, Tiran Alles, Ravi Karunanayake and Thalatha Athukorala.

So, RW recommends people to vote for such as those above, some associated with dishonesty and chicanery. To vote so they help straighten the economy of the country! One cannot help but remember others who were in his team, whether now in the New Demo Front or clinging onto other parties. Many characters within the 225 whose ouster was a battle cry of the Aragalaya are afloat in this election period. However, Cass singles out just three of them for mention: Rohitha Abeywardena, Mahindananda Aluthgamage and Prasanna Ranatunge who were his cabinet ministers and got him to contest the presidency as an independent candidate.

Bit of dung in pot of curd

Most Lankans are now strongly in support of AKD as President of this country. He has stepped forward very correctly so far. Thus, when Cass read a news item in The Island of Tuesday October 22, she read it three times over and ended up startled. Did he really say it? The title of the front-page report was: “General election: AKD wants one party rule – there is no need for an Opposition in Parliament”, reported by seasoned journo Shamindra Ferdinando.

Cass’ wondered whether he had been misquoted? Did he mean less of an opposition, more on the government side? Or did he mean the NPP will oppose themselves if their majority do not agree to new bills and rules?

The NPP wants a one-party rule. That generally is what a ruling party aims at but not at all what the citizens want. We have heard, agree and echo that the NPP should not get 2/3 seats or more in the House. A strong opposition is an essential necessity.