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Editorial

Prez and PCs

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Thursday 31st December, 2020

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s Gama Samaga Pilisandarak (GSP) programme has apparently stood the people inhabiting far-flung corners of the country in good stead. The President seems to have taken a leaf out of the book of the late President Ranasinghe Premadasa, who made a name for himself as a man of action. President Premadasa launched a presidential mobile service (PMS), which he craftily used to make inroads into the provinces at the expense of the Provincial Councils (PCs). The fact that the people did not benefit from the PCs and were desperate to have their problems solved expeditiously made the PMS hugely popular. It also served as an indictment of both the PCs and the public service, characterised by lethargy, inefficiency and callousness.

The ongoing GSP is a presidential mobile service in all but name. However, President Rajapaksa has, to his credit, taken steps to reduce the cost thereof to a bare minimum; it is not a political dog and pony show as such, but it can be considered part of his re-election campaign.

One may argue that there are huge crowds at the GSP venues because people love to see the President and make various appeals to him. But the fact remains that they are faced with burning problems. Most of their complaints to the President are related to bureaucratic bungling, scarcity of water, lack of infrastructural facilities and seemingly intractable issues pertaining to agriculture, their children’s education and, most of all, rural poverty. These problems have gone unaddressed all these years despite the existence of the PCs with 455 members. The blame for this sorry state of affairs should also be apportioned to 225 MPs and more than 8,000 members of the local government institutions. Hardly anything gets done in this country without a presidential intervention.

If the past PC members had served the public faithfully and cared to solve their problems, people would have taken to the streets calling for the PC polls. The yahapalana government postponed the local government and PC polls for fear of defeat, but in so doing, it proved, albeit unwittingly, that the people did not care whether these institutions exited or not. The same holds true for Parliament as well to some extent in that there were no popular protests when the last general election was postponed for months.

Meanwhile, the government decision against holding the PC polls anytime soon is welcome. It has only made a virtue of necessity. An electoral exercise at this juncture is a recipe for disaster. There is no shying away from the fact that the national healthcare system is reaching breaking point, and the death toll from the pandemic is likely to rise exponentially, perhaps necessitating the setting up of triage tents at hospitals unless the runaway virus is brought under control urgently.

Opposition to devolution is growing. The opponents of the PCs maintain that the country has done without the elected PC members for two years or so and, therefore, the PC polls must not be held at all. They are also calling for the abolition of the PC system. Most vociferous among the critics of the PC are some Buddhist monks. The government has not taken kindly to their campaign. Minister Vasudeva Nanayakkara, an ardent supporter of the PC system, while returning from a party leaders’ meeting, where the PC polls were discussed, on Monday, sought to pooh-pooh the monks’ protests, when he was interviewed by the media. He said the monks were not party leaders, implying that they should not be taken seriously as regards their opposition to the PC system.

Comrade Vasu is one of the few politicians people do not dislike. But he needs to be told that it is not only party leaders who should have a say in matters concerning the affairs of this nation; there are other stakeholders, whose views should be heeded. Religious leaders are among them. This, however, does not mean that the clergy should be allowed to run parallel governments or make unfair demands. Similarly, party leaders are vested with no power to commit the country to anything irrevocably at the expense of the national interest. The argument that a nationwide referendum should have been held on the 13th Amendment, which added another tier of government, posing a threat to the unitary status of the state holds water.

The popularity President Rajapaksa’s GSP is proof that the colossal amounts of funds allocated to the PCs have not benefited the rural folk, who have a plethora of problems, which have remained unsolved for more than three decades since the PCs were established. It is doubtful whether their lot will improve in any way even if the PC polls are held and new councillors returned. The proponents of the PC system will have a hard time, trying to counter the arguments being put forth against the PCs.



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Editorial

‘Silent epidemic’, chilling stats

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Saturday 21st June, 2025

The Department of Motor Traffic (DMT) has taken about 44 vehicles including 15 SLTB and private buses off the road, following a random vehicle inspection on the Hatton-Kandy road on 19 June. About 115 vehicles underwent roadside checks, we are told. In other words, about 38% of vehicles inspected by the DMT randomly in one location in the central hills were found to be unroadworthy. This can be considered a microcosm of the overall situation in the country.

Action taken by the DMT to identify unroadworthy vehicles as part of ongoing efforts to make roads safe is commendable, albeit belated. Last month’s tragedy where an SLTB bus carrying 75 passengers went down a precipice, killing 21 of them, near Ramboda, may have jolted the DMT and the police into action. The vehicle inspection programme should be expanded to cover the entire country. If it is not feasible to do so due to resource constraints, etc., it should be conducted in at least in the areas where road accidents are frequent. The police have identified quite a few blackspots across the country.

Meanwhile, the DIG in charge of Traffic Control and Road Safety Indika Hapugoda has revealed that 1,133 fatal road accidents have claimed about 2,000 lives so far this year, according to media reports. This must have sent a chill down everyone’s spine. Assuming that the media reports quoting DIG Hapugoda are accurate, the number of lives lost in road accidents during the first six months of the current year is only slightly lower than that in the whole of last year. It has been reported that about 2,141 road accidents left about 2,243 individuals dead in 2024. The number of road fatalities average seven a day, and it is likely to be much higher this year.

Director of the Colombo National Hospital Orthopedic Services Department, Dr. Indika Jagoda, has rightly called road accident fatalities a ‘silent epidemic’, which has not received the same public attention as dengue and other such diseases. Road accidents exert a severe strain on the state-run hospitals, and their economic and social costs are enormous. As we pointed out in a previous editorial comment, a comprehensive World Bank report, Delivering Road Safety in Sri Lanka; Leadership Priorities and Initiatives to 2030, reveals that ‘the high road crash fatality and injury rates on Sri Lanka’s roads undermine the economic growth and progress made over the past decade on reducing poverty and boosting prosperity’. The report says the annual crash deaths per capita in Sri Lanka are twice the average rate in high-income countries and five times that of the best performing countries in the world! Sri Lanka reportedly has the worst road fatality rate among its immediate neighbours in the South Asia region.

Unroadworthy vehicles must be identified and taken off roads, and punitive action taken against their owners for endangering the lives of all road users. However, they are only one of the causative factors. Road safety experts have identified as the common causes of crashes on expressways and other roads in Sri Lanka the following, among others: speeding, distractions, recklessness, fatigue, driving under the influence of alcohol or narcotics, inclement weather conditions, inadequate road conditions, tailgating, improper lane changes, inexperience of drivers, overtaking dangerously, poor visibility, poor signage or lack of road markings and impatience or time pressure. One of the aforesaid factors or a combination of two or more of them could lead to fatal accidents on any road. So, the success of any strategy to prevent road mishaps hinges on addressing these causative factors as well.

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Editorial

AKD praises Mahinda

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Friday 20th June, 2025

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake (AKD) paid a glowing tribute to the outgoing Secretary to the Finance Ministry, Mahinda Siriwardena, on Wednesday. He ensured that Siriwardena would end his crucial innings in the Treasury on a high note, and commended the latter for having helped steer the country’s battered economy to safety. Siriwardena praised President Dissanayake for having provided political leadership for the ongoing economic recovery efforts.

The felicitation of Siriwardena was replete with irony, which may not have been lost on keen political observers. The highest accolades for his Treasury stint, which could be likened to a high-wire act performed without a safety net, came from the leader of the very political party that bayed for his blood, as it were, during Ranil Wickremesinghe’s presidency.

The JVP would tear Siriwardena to shreds for drastic economic recovery measures that sent the public reeling. It also threatened to throw him behind bars under an NPP government. Thankfully, Siriwardena did not crack under political pressure and hostile propaganda. Following last year’s regime change, the sobering reality had a mellowing effect on the JVP/NPP, which had to come to terms with it. President Dissanayake deserves praise for having retained several key state officials who had played a pivotal role in helping the country navigate its worst-ever economic crisis during the previous dispensation. Thus, he ensured an uninterrupted continuation of the country’s economic recovery programme backed by the IMF.

Siriwardena, or any other efficient state official, for that matter, would not have succeeded if not for unwavering political leadership President Ranil Wickremesinghe provided for the country’s economic recovery efforts. To give credit where it is due, Wickremesinghe had the courage to make a host of unpopular decisions to save the economy; he had to increase taxes and tariffs while curtailing state expenditure amidst protests. It is doubtful whether any other leader would have dared grasp the nettle the way he did on the economic front.

But for those stringent measures, it would not have been possible to break the back of the economic crisis, and the IMF programme would have collapsed, plunging the country into chaos or even anarchy. President Wickremesinghe would have been able to win last year’s presidential election if not for the many wrongs he committed on the political front. He unflinchingly shielded crooks and succumbed to the arrogance of power. He did not heed democratic dissent and went so far as to make an election disappear in 2023.

He claimed that he had to prioritise the basic needs of the public over elections, and therefore funds could not be allocated for the local government polls, which were to be held in that year. Siriwardena, who carried out President Wickremesinghe’s controversial order to that effect, refusing to allocate funds for elections, was lucky that the Supreme Court dismissed two contempt of court cases against him. They were widely thought to be touch-and-go cases. Interestingly, one of the two contempt of court applications was filed by President Dissanayake’s trusted lieutenant, Vijitha Herath, and the other by the SJB. Obviously, Herath did so with Dissanayake’s blessings.

Perhaps, being the Treasury chief in Sri Lanka is one of the toughest jobs in the world, like that of the Columbia River Bar Pilots. Whoever holds that position incurs the wrath of ruling party MPs with an enormous appetite for state funds so much so that one of the Treasury Chiefs came to be dubbed an economic hitman. That job has become doubly difficult during the current economic crisis. Siriwardena must have spent many sleepless nights. His high-stress job may have accelerated his biological age, causing it to overcome his chronological age.

It is fervently hoped that in filling the vacancy created by Siriwardena’s exit, in the Treasury, President Dissanayake will not repeat the mistake he made by trying to appoint someone without adequate experience and competence as the Auditor General at the expense of a highly capable senior official of integrity in the Auditor General’s Department. He must ensure that Siriwardena’s successor will be an experienced, competent official of integrity.

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Editorial

Be prepared!

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Thursday 19th June, 2025

The government and the Opposition behaved yesterday––for once. They agreed to have a parliamentary debate on the Middle East conflict and its impact on Sri Lanka yesterday evening itself. If only they had reached consensus on that matter the previous day itself instead of clashing. All Opposition MPs, save a few, staged a walkout, on Tuesday, berating the Speaker. The Opposition and the NPP should learn to act with restraint and address crucial issues in a conciliatory manner. It was unfortunate that the debate had to be postponed yesterday as SJB MP Ajith Perera, who called for it, was not present in the Chamber. So much for the Opposition’s commitment to its legislative duties and functions!

Sri Lanka ought to support the ongoing global campaign for the de-escalation of the Middle East conflict vis-à-vis sinister attempts by some western powers to aggravate the situation and further their geostrategic interests. US President Donald Trump made himself out to be a dove during his first term, but the hawk in him has now come out. Instead of working towards preventing the ongoing conflict from spinning out of control, Washington is busy fuelling the flames. The US unequivocally justified Israel’s retaliation in the wake of unprovoked Hamas attacks in October 2023 and has since sent military aid to Tel Aviv generously, but now it is asking Iran to stop retaliatory attacks which Israel provoked with a series of air strikes on Iranian interests. Speculation is rife that the US may even go beyond Trump’s rhetoric and threats and join Israel in attacking Iran purportedly to scuttle Iran’s nuclear programme the way the US and its western allies invaded Iraq ‘to destroy the weapons of mass destruction’, which were never found.

Only a few world leaders like French President Emmanuel Macron have called upon both Israel and Iran to stop trading missiles and drones. That should be the position the civilized world must adopt. The two powerful nations at war must be pressured to agree to a truce forthwith for the sake of their own citizens and global peace. The world already has enough and more serious issues to contend with and therefore needs another war like a hole in the head.

Meanwhile, the NPP government should initiate a broader discussion on the Middle East issue, given the economic costs of a further escalation of the Iran-Israel conflict the developing countries such as Sri Lanka will have to bear. Global oil price hikes are bound to lead to a significant increase in Sri Lanka’s import bill. Iran is an export destination for Sri Lanka’s tea, and Israel has provided jobs for thousands of Sri Lankans. So, Sri Lanka’s economy is likely to suffer a triple whammy. Besides a severe strain on the country’s scarce foreign exchange reserves, the possibility of a fuel shortage cannot also be ruled out. It is imperative that the government get the country’s import priorities right, and manage the forex reserves frugally.

The government has informed Parliament that there are sufficient fuel stocks. This is certainly good news, but it always pays to be prepared for the worst-case scenario. One can only hope that the escalation of the Middle East conflict and speculation of shortages will not trigger panic buying of fuel. Prudence demands that the government seriously consider dusting off the QR-based fuel rationing tool, which stood the country in good stead in 2022. Such emergency levers must be on standby. Fuel shortages have the potential to bring down governments, as we saw in 2022.

When fuel pumps run dry and queues extend near filling stations, people’s love for a government flies out of the window. One can ask former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who had a narrow escape from a mob including his former supporters thanks to his Olympic-standard sprint, what it is like to be in such a situation.

Meanwhile, the SJB-led Opposition ought to take its legislative responsibilities seriously, and ensure that its members are present in the House, especially when important issues are taken up for debate. The government and the Opposition must stop behaving like Iran and Israel in Parliament and concentrate on preparing the country to face the worst-case scenario.

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