Yahapalana Govt., SLFP and the Rajapaksas

By Sreema Fernando 

Maithripala Sirisena, the common presidential candidate, was elected as the sixth President of our country on 8 January 2015 mainly due to the efforts made by the late Ven. Maduluwawe Sobitha Thera, former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga and a number of civil societies.

There was strong opposition to the Rajapaksa administration. This victory was made possible mainly due to the UNP votes and the votes of the Muslim and Tamil communities. There were accusations of large-scale corruption, a deterioration of law and order, nepotism and family rule.

MR who was eyeing the presidency for a third term was defeated marginally after a hectic campaign launched by the Opposition parties. He has proved to be the most popular politician in this country since Independence due his charisma, Sinhala Buddhist outlook, major development projects including some uneconomical mega projects and mainly for crushing the ruthless terrorist organisation, the LTTE. It could be safely assumed despite numerous allegations against him, his family and the defectors, his vote base still remains almost intact. 

The Yahapalana Government was elected after having ousted the Rajapaksas to probe the large-scale corruption and irregularities, abolish the presidency, establish the rule of law, inquire into killings and disappearances, find a just and lasting solution to the minority issue and appoint independent commissions for elections, public service, police, human rights, finance and the permanent commission to investigate allegations of bribery and corruption.

But the performance of the Government is far from satisfactory and not up to expectations of the majority of people who were responsible for the change. The cost of living is unbearable, development process is rather slow and there is in fighting amongst Yahapalana stakeholders. The public confidence is eroding due all these and a good number of people who appointed them have lost the high hopes they once had.

However the Government should be given credit for establishing the Rule of Law, for enacting the 19th Amendment restricting the presidential office only for two terms, for pruning some of the powers of the president and for providing more powers to the independent commissions. The Government has also been successful in improving relations with all countries, especially our immediate neighbours.

The Prime Minister who is known as Mr. Clean has tarnished his unblemished reputation having gone out of the way to protect Arjun Mahendran who was primarily responsible for the bond scam, resulting in huge losses to the Government. This has eroded the confidence of the investors and the general public.

The actions of the former Finance Minister and certain vociferous members of the Government would not be endorsed by the right thinking masses. It is best for the former Finance Minister to adopt a low profile without justifying his case until a verdict is given by the Courts. He should keep away from politics until elections are over in the best interest of the party, especially those who are contesting in Colombo.

Although politicians, most of whom are corrupt according to the Head of State, are having good times due to the short-sighted thinking of the masses who appoint misfits as their representatives, it is the collective responsibility of the leaders of the main political parties to field honourable, intelligent, educated, energetic and patriotic candidates for the country to overcome this problem and prosper like so many other countries in the world. 

The main partners of the Unity Government have to find a just and lasting solution to the minority problem before it is too late. This is a contentious issue as the Joint Opposition is making serious allegations about a division of the country. No allegations have been proved up to now except for jailing two senior Government officers for misusing their authority.

Now the Government is talking about the establishment of Special Courts to deal with the problem of longstanding irregularities and corruption cases. There is no progress with regard to the killings and abductions. It is difficult to understand why the Government waited for three long years to do these changes knowing very well about the long delays experienced in the legal process which is known to everyone. It is doubtful whether there was a deliberate attempt to delay the cases due to political advantage. 

The President made untiring efforts to contact Basil Rajapaksa to unite the two warring factions, which were turned down by the Joint Opposition. The UNP too may have adopted a similar strategy with a view to forming a future Government with the JO should they emerge victorious at the elections.

The President was appointed by the people to run the country efficiently where the benefits are expected to trickle down to the masses and establish good governance. However his priority seems to be consolidating the SLFP where the Joint Opposition is equally powerful due to MR’s unprecedented popularity.

There is no doubt the President as the Head of the Party should make endeavours to strengthen the party which has a large number of Parliamentarians needed to pass important Bills in the Parliament with a two-third majority. However he should be more tactful in criticism as it hurts the UNP members, who in turn attack the President.

No one can see the hurts and sentiments of the people who voted for him at the last election. This does not mean the appointment of the Presidential Commission to probe the bond scam is wrong. He should be saluted for the action initiated where the wrongdoers will be eventually punished by the Courts. The President should not threaten those who are involved in irregularities and theft of public property, but leave it to the Courts and play the role of a statesman. 

He chose to inquire from the Supreme Court whether his term was five or six years even without consulting the party leaders who are in the Unity Government. He shouldn’t have done this on his own when crucial elections are round the corner. The utterances made about the sword and statements made on a political stage by him and some senior SLFP Cabinet Ministers during the ensuing period after the AG’s recommendation to the Supreme Court made matters worse.

No one should underestimate the popularity of MR. There is no Gotabaya Rajapaksa in the present Cabinet. He is still respected by the people for giving leadership as a senior Government official to annihilate the LTTE and beautifying the City of Colombo and the surrounding areas. Some in the Cabinet who are capable of undertaking similar responsibilities have been side-lined for reasons best known to the so-called leaders. 

If the unexpected happens on 10 February, one should not be surprised to see a number of somersaults made by SLFP ministers before the presidential elections in 2019. 

The President is left with one-and-a-half years after the LG elections to accomplish the pledges given to the masses before he was elected to the highest office. It is hoped that he has the will to deliver all that was promised and abolish the executive presidency altogether.