Rationalise this extravagant election carnival

At a time when the media is enjoying a field day by orchestrating the election campaigns of 35 presidential hopefuls, my attention was drawn to a well-articulated and educative analysis by Dr. Nihal Jayawickrama, an eminent constitutional expert. Having dealt with the implications of the 19th Amendment on the post of Executive Presidency, he begins his concluding remarks as follows:

“Why is it then that, in full and complete knowledge of the purely ceremonial nature of the office of the next President, the major political parties are preparing to squander billions of rupees, and put at risk the personal security of thousands of citizens, in an island-wide election spread over a hundred days, to choose the next President?"

Accordingly, the immediate onus is on the said political parties to explain to the voting public, the rationale for their extravagant election campaigns. As if to add insult to injury, some selfish Trade Unions fishing in troubled waters have set in motion a wave of politically motivated strikes, bringing the country’s economic activities to a virtual standstill. The country will be very unfortunate if the political parties say that their exercise is to win the General Election that will immediately follow the Presidential Election. Can our country bleeding in a colossal debt trap afford this political circus, orchestrated by a coterie of power hungry politicians? The media, printing and advertising trades of course will not grudge this situation, as they can collect enough news fodder, printing orders and advertisements to fill the pages and primetime news bulletins.

At this point, it is also apt to quote the ending of Dr. Jayawickrama’s concluding remarks as follows:

“Why are civil society, professional bodies and political columnists remaining silent on this issue? Why is everyone reconciled to the fact, the unfortunate fact, that through mountains of garbage and corruption at every level, in every institution, in politics, business and in the legal sphere, we are now sleepwalking into anarchy?”

It is however, encouraging to note that veteran journalist Victor Ivan has since written to the press corroborating the timely and stubborn facts disclosed by Dr. Jayawickrama. Also, Rohana Hettiarachchi of PAFFREL has published a very useful analysis in the press, both in English and Sinhala, for the benefit of the voting public.

In this context, our humble request is to halt the current ‘sleepwalking in to anarchy’ by throwing a ‘wet rug' constituting the following action steps:

1. The media should take every step to educate the innocent voting public of the true nature and powers of the future Presidency. Towards this end, it would be the sacred duty of all concerned political, constitutional, and civil authorities, including the Elections Commission, to express their candid views through print and electronic media.

2. The political parties should immediately stop their extravagant campaigns running into billions, taking the innocent public for a ride. Towards this end, the media too could refrain from giving undue publicity to such political propaganda, in order to prevent the ongoing economic activities plunging into disarray, with huge losses in man-hours spent in rallies, processions and demonstrations.

3. Since the installation of a ceremonial President by Parliament with powers to control the Provincial Governors at this juncture is not practically possible, the Elections Commission should strive to keep the colossal expenditure estimated at Rs. 5 billion for conducting the forthcoming Presidential Election at the lowest possible level.

4. In the face of futile attempts by as much as 35 persons joining the presidential race, the Elections Commission should redefine eligibility criteria and deposit requirements for this ceremonial post. The logical option would be for Parliament to nominate and elect the ceremonial President.

Bernard Fernando,

Moratuwa