Towering bud

Friday 7th August, 2020

It is all over bar the shouting. The SLPP was on course for a resounding victory, at the time of writing, according to the general election results that had come in. Its performance was much better than pre-polls surveys had predicted. The country needs a stable government capable of making tough decisions to revive the economy and safeguard national security among other things. A weak administration dependent on political crutches is not equal to that task. One can only hope that there will be an active Opposition to act as an effective countervailing force.

The new government to be formed will have to act with responsibility, and the onus is on President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to ensure that it does so. The SLPP has made known its intention to change the Constitution or at least scrap the 19th Amendment. What it is mulling over is the political version of a brain surgery, and it had better tread cautiously. The best way to amend the Constitution is to adopt a consensual approach. The government will be able to muster the support of more than two-thirds of the MPs for its project if a consensus thereon can be reached.

Speculation is rife in political circles that an attempt is likely to be made to introduce something similar to the 18th Amendment, which was a total disaster. The Constitution must not be amended or repealed according to the whims and fancies of politicians or for the benefit of their parties. That previous leaders sought to further their personal interests and acted out of expediency and not principle is the reason why the present Constitution has become a real mess.

Ambitious politicians who have lost their seats must be eyeing the National List (NL) to creep into Parliament through the backdoor. The NL was introduced to enable distinguished citizens averse to active politics to enter Parliament and be of some service to the public. This mechanism was blatantly abused, in 2015, as never before, to bring in defeated candidates as MPs, and, worse, some of them were even appointed to the Cabinet. This practice, which is antithetical to democracy, must end forthwith, and only those named as NL candidates and presented to the public before the election should be appointed to Parliament. All the political parties that secure NL slots must desist from polluting Parliament again.

Polls observers inform us that as much as Rs. 77 million has been spent on electing a single MP. It costs the taxpayer at least Rs. 16 million a day to maintain Parliament. The cost of maintaining MPs has to be reduced drastically. Now that the government has imposed a blanket ban on imports to save foreign exchange, the duty-free vehicle scheme and concessionary loans for MPs must be suspended immediately. While on the hustings, all candidates had us believe that they were willing even to lay down their lives for the sake of the country. Having talked the talk, the newly elected MPs will have to walk the walk.

The country is in dire financial straits and finds it difficult to service debt, and President Rajapaksa should give serious thought to launching an austerity drive. A rupee saved is a rupee earned. The Swedish model is ideal for Sri Lanka. The President himself leads a very simple life without being a burden on the public, and, therefore, there is no reason why he cannot ask others to follow suit. The salary of a Swedish MP (a member of Riksdag) is only twice that of an elementary school teacher. MPs are not given official vehicles and have to travel in buses and trains. Only the Prime Minister can use an official car. As for accommodation, the Swedish Parliament provides its members with small apartments, where they themselves have to do household chores. They are not entitled to personal staff. Ministers are not considered demigods and have to maintain transparency and accountability in all transactions. One may recall that in 1995 Deputy Prime Minister Mona Sahlin lost her ministerial post as she was found to have used her official credit card to buy nappies for her baby.

Crises are the crucibles wherein real leaders are forged. One does not have to wield power to become a true leader; even Opposition politicians can provide leadership to the people in troubled times. An opportunity has presented itself for them to do so.