People are like fire and water

Since the inception of this reign it has been a path full of potholes, ruts and disruptive ups and downs and heavy turbulence, rapidly approaching a culminating point – Pic by Shehan Gunasekara

When comparing fire and water, past experiences teach us that water is more devastating, destructive and deadly than fire in most instances. 

Fires come with loud noises, bright lighting and at a lightning speed. It definitely can be doused manually or extinguishes itself naturally when the fuel or the igniter dies off.   

Water takes time to gather power and ferocity, either through wind, rain or any other natural means unless the cause is manmade. Water comes with a placid calmness, an imperceptible silence, with a mighty ferocious power and maintains its force until the vigour runs out from within which is difficult to stop or control manually. 

Present-day society is like fire and water

A fragmented group of people are just like fire. They are voicing their perceptions and grouses over media, organise protests, launch strikes, industrial actions, conduct rallies and resort to poster/banner campaigns. Although a spark of interest is ignited as a result there is no sustenance to continue a prolonged fire. After a short time their voice is either doused forcibly or it dies naturally after vigour runs out. 

In contrast, the majority in society are like water. They take a cool long time to muster vigour or force as they inherently stomach many hardships due to their humbleness, poverty, simple uncomplicated living styles, excessive gullible tolerant attitude and their cultural or religious values. 

However, once they accumulate power beyond a certain point, the anger bursts out reacting relentlessly unleashing anger, vengeance, wrath and destruction that will be uncontrollably vicious. Like a storm, like a tsunami or like a torrent it will destroy anything and everything that is in its path. 

Since the inception of this reign it has been a path full of potholes, ruts and disruptive ups and downs and heavy turbulence, rapidly approaching a culminating point. At the end of that culminating point there is no gradual curve to soften the fall as it is just a dead-drop. 

Cracks are increasingly appearing among the majority water segment of the society blended with bitter anger and hatred. Arguably it can be safely presumed that the culminating point of the path of the Government to the dead-drop and the bursting point of the water people may occur synchronised together. If that is so, water will destroy everything in its path to reach its destiny. Everyone and everything in that path will be irrecoverably destroyed. 

Very sadly the nation has reached a very bleak point restricting to merely two options for survival. One, unfortunately and most loved and commonly practiced in Sri Lanka is to abandon the ship as is done by mice. But the second, which is most relevant and the dire need of the nation, is to do a 360 turn to re-strategise governance and make extremely drastic (probably extra extreme) firm decisions that can be distasteful to many but will put the nation back on track for development. 

It is urgently and critically wise to decide right now, this very moment, as to which option one wants to select as the clock is ticking and the time is running out by the minutes. 

Why is this tunnel without a glimmer of light? 

How this great nation reached this wretched, desolately grim state is not by default but by choice and it certainly is not a mystery. For 73 years the same faced coin was being tossed up and characteristically the same generic coterie of people has driven a gullible nation towards this state in the guise of governance.

Although I am not a legal eagle, it is apparent that the wheels of administration and legislature have turned more towards the benefits of the rulers, for them to switch power or exchange batons and to exploit or manipulatively fleece the nation’s worth than to the benefit of the masses. 

In the existing political system or culture even if the most divine saintly angel is elected, the result will be the same as we experience now and have done in the past. Expecting a change in the system by changing an individual is like expecting a cow to fly. So invariably the only and single option left to this nation is to give voice to changing the system.  

Nothing is permanent in this impermanent universe

 As philosophised by Lord Buddha even the troubles or bad times are impermanent. Hence, there is hope for us to turn around towards positivity and switch that light on at the end of the tunnel. It cannot be achieved by publication of few irrelevant, deceiving and inconsistent gazettes as has been done for the past decades. 

However, it is not rocket science as well. It only needs a 360 re-strategising of vision in the best and honest interest of the nation sans any political agendas and to take a few extremely drastic (probably extra drastic) firm decisions that can be distasteful to many to put the nation back on track.

The writer retired as the Deputy Chief of Staff of the Sri Lanka Army after an unblemished and an illustrious career of almost 36 years. He has served the nation through all conflicts since 1985 and participated in almost all ground offensive operations during conflict times as well as peace time. He was a renowned ambassador of peace-building and reconciliation.