President Sirisena and the media

President Maithripala Sirisena. The people and the media remain deeply disappointed with the Government’s failure to fulfil its pledges of prosecuting those responsible for crime and corruption

By Latheef Farook

Accusing the media of criticising the Government, President Maithripala Sirisena stated recently that media personnel had forgotten the suffering they underwent during the Rajapaksa regime. He claimed that it was his Government which had freed the media and had given it the freedom it now enjoys.

Of course it is common knowledge that there are plenty of Rajapaksa stooges all over including in the media. The talk has been that there are plenty of Rajapaksa mercenaries, stooges and ghost writers exploiting every possible opportunity to discredit the Government.

However, the media in general is telling home truths for which the Government is fully responsible. The media today is reflecting the mood of the people who voted for the Government in the hope that they would bring to book all those who brought the country to misery.

The people and the media which supported the Government alike remain deeply disappointed with the Government’s dismal failure to fulfil its pledges to prosecute those responsible for high-profile fraud, corruption, crime, murder, looting of the nation’s wealth, the list continues. If we are to go by reports in the media, the so-called patriots only developed themselves under the guise of developing the country.

Their tainted projects include the Hambantota port, Mattala airport and stadium, conference hall, Colombo port and the so-called financial city projects which virtually sold the country to foreigners. These projects increased the country’s debt beyond its financial capacity for repayment. The country was financially mortgaged to foreign countries. This is one among many of the reasons why the Rajapaksa Government was thrown out.

What has now been going on under the present Government has caused deep disappointment as they do not want the collapse of the Government. Now the question is why the new Government, which came to power on a slogan of good governance, is not taking firm action to deal with all those who ruined this country.

Most responsible media personnel who do not want the return of the Rajapaksa Government point out that the media is not trying to topple the Government. Instead it is highlighting the Government’s failure   to ensure that even at this late stage it wakes up, fulfil its pledges and averts any potential disaster which could bring about unpredictable consequences.

Unfortunately, the current policy of doing nothing has resulted in people losing confidence in the ability of the Government to deliver on its pledges to the nation. This means the Government, willingly or unwillingly, is playing into the hands of those who are suspected of plotting and conspiring to topple it. This is what the media does not want and thus it is highlighting burning issues in the hope that the Government will wake up to these realities.

The often-raised question at almost every social gathering and function is why the Government can’t arrest the rogues, thieves, frauds and looters who flourished under Rajapaksa Government. Why doesn’t the Government bring to book those who committed crimes, such as the suspected killings of rugger player Wasim Thajudeen and those from the media, not only from the previous Government but those in the present one too.

Public or private gain?

To cite an example, time and again the media raises questions about the wisdom behind the Government granting millions of rupees to import cars for parliamentarians at a time when the country’s near-bankrupt economy is run by the International Monetary Fund with foreign debt exceeding $ 60 billion, almost 83% of the GDP, while the people are being subjected to immense hardships in their day-to-day lives.

The people are fed up with the empty slogans such as turning Colombo into a financial centre between Singapore and Dubai. Sri Lanka was more than a financial centre in the early 1950s when the late Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Kwan Yew said that he would make Singapore a Sri Lanka and Dubai then was an unknown desert strip used for drying fish. 

Almost every organisation is mismanaged and the island today is one of the most mismanaged countries in the world despite all its natural blessings and the situation is turning more disastrous than ever before.

The people point out the need to sort out problems such as the dispute between doctors and the Government over the SAITAM issue. This issue, coupled with repeated student protests, has caused immense difficulty to the people. These are issues which need to be sorted out as early as possible. However, that is not being done. Instead Government leaders are travelling worldwide signing bilateral agreements which so far have failed to yield any fruitful results including foreign investments. Yet up to date neither the President nor the Prime Minister thought it fit to visit to the Gulf states which provide employment to around a million Sri Lankans whose annual remittances is more than $ 7 billion, helping to prevent the economy from collapse.

There was a time when decent and responsible elements in the bureaucracy kept corrupt politicians in check. However, in the recent past, especially during the Rajapaksa regime, politicians and a large section of the bureaucracy joined hands to plunder the country and ruin several vital establishments.

For example, during the Rajapaksa regime there were reports of politicians and the bureaucracy jointly looting around $ 3.5 billion in tsunami aid while tsunami victims continue to live even today in temporary shelters.  

The situation is such that seven decades after independence the country cannot find a solution to its waste problem while an airline is almost grounded due to mismanagement.

The Government came in with a pledge to stop the hate crimes and bring about reconciliation within divided communities. However, when racist thugs began attacking mosques and Muslim-owned businesses, the Government remained indifferent, with many accusing it of giving the perpetrators of these crimes a free hand to act.

This is the reason why the media and the people alike are critical of the Government and it is time for the Government to wake up from its slumber and save the country and itself.

The author could be reached via email address  [email protected]