Stability through institutions, not individuals

Ranil Wickremesinghe, the grand veteran of Sri Lankan politics has been appointed as prime minister, for the sixth time in his career. The buzzword since this extraordinary development has been stability. 

Many who had recently been vocal about the resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and holding the Rajapaksa family accountable for their alleged corruption seem content to give Wickremesinghe a chance to turn the economy around. In this school of thought, further protests and demands for political change will cause political instability and derail the Wickremesinghe panacea that is going to save Sri Lanka from its current economic predicament.

Once again political stability and the task of ‘saving’ Sri Lanka have been placed on the shoulders of an individual. Not only is this naïve, it is bound for inevitable failure. If there was one thing for which there was consensus among all shades of the political spectrum in the last few months was the need for the resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. This demand that was so aptly presented as ‘GotaGoHome’ entailed not only the resignation of the incumbent but the outright change in the system of governance which would abolish the executive presidency. Those who called for the resignation of the president did not present alternatives to replace him. This was because he was not meant to be replaced. 

For four decades Sri Lanka has witnessed the erosion of effective governance due to the executive presidency. The current economic crisis is not a simple case of mismanagement by a few officials but a political crisis that was enabled by the excessively powerful presidency. After the enactment of the 20th Amendment to the Constitution, President Rajapaksa eroded even the token checks and balances that were imposed on his office. The rest as they say is history. Without parliamentary oversight, a handful of officials at the Central Bank and the Treasury took Sri Lanka to economic collapse with the full approval and backing of the president.

After witnessing such a catastrophic economic collapse, with its first-ever sovereign default and ensuing political chaos, there was no other option but for the Government and President Rajapaksa to heed the demands of the overall majority. This was finally the moment that was long-awaited for system change. And then enters Ranil Wickremesinghe who without a single condition for democratic reform or structural change gleefully accepts the premiership with a single seat in Parliament. All that Wickremesinghe has done is betray the golden opportunity that was presented for meaningful democratic change. The ‘saviour’ he shows himself to be is also not something that is backed by facts. 

On previous occasions when he did win elections to become prime minister, with all that political clout and mandate he has hardly delivered on any economic promises. Granted that he may not have crashed the economy as witnessed in the last two years, but that is a very low bar. The people of this country had rejected him and his party at the last general election. He had reduced the oldest, largest and the grandest political party he inherited to humiliating non-existence. He himself lost his seat and only managed to sneak into Parliament through the national list. Today none of the Opposition political parties have extended support to him and he remains the prime minister of the SLPP. Expecting such an individual to deliver political stability or an economic miracle is only but wishful thinking.

In desperate times it is natural to look for saviours. Sri Lanka has time and time again looked for such leaders to enter the arena and save the day. In the process, we have eroded our ability to save ourselves which can only be done through the strengthening of democratic institutions. An empowered Parliament, an accountable executive, an independent judiciary and an engaged and well-informed electorate are what are going to save Sri Lanka and offer the stability it so desperately desires. In order to achieve this, the fight must go on to change the system.