A Golden Age in Public Administration

It is arguable that the golden age of public administration in Ceylon/Sri Lanka were the years between 1948 and 1972, probably extending even upto 1989. Before 1948, it was a colonial, bureaucratic administration. Since 1948, Sri Lanka had a Parliamentary democracy. The administrative system during this period was one of collaboration between the administrators and the politicians, each respecting the other’s role.

There was a degree of autonomy for the public service. Most senior administrators of this period worked in English and so did the politicians. The administrators came largely from the University of Ceylon. Moreover, the parliamentarians were genuine representatives of the people, elected directly through a constituency system. The members of Parliament knew their constituents and they in turn knew their parliamentarians. These systems have gradually been eroded.

Elmo De Silva was a senior administrator during this period. His career ranged from the late 1950s to the early 1990s. The first part of his career was in district administration, and the latter part was in the Customs Department and later in the World Customs Organization. He became an international authority on certain aspects of customs administration like trade facilitation. The volume deals with his career, and also with his early life, describing his school days and university life at Peradeniya in the 1950s. His family and personal life is interwoven into the narrative. Running through his life is his love of music. His marriageto his wife, Naomi, comes through the narrative.

The author’s early life was not a bed of roses, nor was it a bed of thorns. One could describe him as belonging to a middle class family, with his father employed in the postal service, most of the time as a postmaster in the outstations. His father was transferred from one place to another and that consequently affected the author’s education as he had to change schools frequently.

The author describes in some detail, the family life of his childhood and the schools he attended. One school in Ratnapura had a class in which children aged six to 16 were placed together – an intriguing mix of primary and adult education. From his early days, the author had musical talent, and music had been one of his life-long interests. When he married Naomi, his musical interests and enjoyment were complemented by that of his wife who was an excellent pianist.

Elmo De Silva had a successful four years at the University at Peradeniya from 1953 to 1957. He ended with an honours degree in Geography. He describes his days at Peradeniya in some detail. Music was one of his interests at the time. He remembers Ivor Jennings, the Vice Chancellor, who made a big difference to Peradeniya at the time. The author is critical of the quality of some of the lectures, especially in his first year when he had to read history. He describes some of the then students by their nicknames which they probably would like to forget in later years. There are also some interesting references to University slang of that time.

From the late 1950s to the early 1970s, Elmo De Silva’s career was in district administration. He first served as an administrative officer in the Department of Agriculture. Then he joined the Land Commissioner’s Department as a District Land Officer and served in the districts of Hambantota, Galle and Polonnaruwa. He describes, the relationship he had with the members of Parliament of those districts. In those days, it was a friendly relationship.

The MPs knew their constituents intimately and were conversant with their problems. This pattern of relationships between the MP and the public servant at the district level has changed dramatically since the MPs came to be selected through proportional representation. The MPs had no familiarity with problems of constituents as they did not represent any particular geographical area within the district.

Elmo De Silva will always be remembered for his role in the second phase of the Kaudulla colonization scheme in the Polonnaruwa District. He was instrumental in opening up 5,000 acres of new land and settling colonists during his years as District Land Officer in Polonnaruwa. The volume describes his experiences of that time.

C. P. de Silva was the member of Parliament for Minneriya and the Minister of Lands, Irrigation and Power. Prior to that, he had been AGA in Polonnaruwa in the 1940s. He had an intimate knowledge of the district and Elmo de Silva had a close relationship with him (as did Ivan Samarawickrama, the then GA). The volume describes the very unusual role of C. P. de Silva in the district, as AGA, MP and Minister of Lands. There is no other politician one can think of, whose diverse roles in his career converged so intimately with the interests of his constituents (Polonnaruwa district was largely one of colonization schemes).

The author has great admiration for C. P. de Silva. “Hon C. P. de Silva was the first to conceive the Mahaweli River Irrigation Project. He thought of this when standing on the Manampitiya bridge in Polonnaruwa, under which the Mahaweli flows. If I remember correct this is referred to in the foreword to the UNDP sponsored feasibility Report”.

One ubiquitous feature of district administration when the working language was English, was the petition writer who converted complaints of the public into some kind of English in a petition which was then delivered to the relevant administrator. The author describes one of these situations. “The first petition I received was against the farm manager of the Mapalana Agricultural Farm. The petition commenced with a very obsequous sentence, which says ‘we place this petition at your honour’s feet and beg for a solution’. Since the pun of the English language was not known to the writer of the petition, there were exhilarating mistakes. Eg. the petition stated that the farm manager was “giving the works” (work) to the young women and not “giving the works” to the older women. An added ‘s’ made all the difference.

The author’s career took a dramatic turn in the mid-1970s. From agriculture and lands, he moved to international trade and the Department of Imports and Exports. Harry Gunaratna, the Controller, who was a former DLO colleague asked him to come and join him at the department as Deputy Controller. A couple of years later, a vacancy occurred in the Customs Department for what became later known as the post of Deputy Director General. There were many who were interested in this job.

When the Minister of Finance (Felix R. Dias Bandaranaike) asked the relevant officer in the Ministry “whether there was any applicant who had not lobbied to be appointed to this post. He had said that only I had not done so. Besides, I had my Import and Export control experience. He then ordered Mr. Gomez to appoint me to fill the vacancy”. That was how senior appointments were made those days.

Elmo De Silva had an outstanding career at the Customs, and was a central figure in the Sri Lankan economic transition from a controlled to an open market economy. The new government which came into power in 1977 is credited with this economic transformation. While the politicians decided on broad policies, there were many critical tasks which had to be undertaken to make them a working reality. In opening up the economy, the Customs and the tariff system had a key role to play. Elmo De Silva was actively engaged in facilitating this transition – in the removal of tariff barriers, in trade facilitation, reducing the many requirements of documentation and streamlining the procedures involved. He became an authority on trade facilitation, and was much involved in the international engagements which led to agreed procedures among customs bodies internationally.

He describes the many conferences and seminars which he attended. He worked closely with the Export Development Board. He was appointed a member of the Presidential Tariff Commission of the late 1970s. He was also appointed Chairman of the Trade Facilitation Committee. The author expresses his great regard for ministers such as Ronnie de Mel (Finance) and Lalith Athulathmudali (Trade) for their key role in the overall economic transition of the country which was initiated by President J. R. Jayewardene.

The author’s valuable insights into the operations of government in opening up the economy is a major contribution to the understanding of the economic history of that time. What emerges clearly from this volume is also the close working relationship which prevailed at the time between ministers and public servants. Technical advice was much valued, and there was a clear division between political decision making and administrative action.

Elmo De Silva had five years with the World Customs Organization (WCO) in Brussels. This was a key organization in the entire process of opening up world trade, with the establishment of the World Trade Organization and the reduction of tariff and non-tariff barriers. The author’s expertise in trade facilitation was highly regarded in the many countries and in the many organizations with which he worked while in the WCO. The volume is replete with information of his many engagements while in the WCO.

The high quality of Elmo’s contributions while at the WCO, is illustrated by the tribute paid to him by the Organization of American States (in Washington, USA), and which is contained in the volume.

On a personal note. I have known Elmo since our University days at Peradeniya, and as fellow residents of Ramanathan Hall in the 1950s. Since then, our paths have crossed as fellow District Land Officers in the 1960s. It is a privilege to have known Elmo and his wife Naomi. Elmo De Silva is one of the most conscientious public servants I have known in my career – highly principled and dedicated to his work, and at the same time, a friend for all seasons. His autobiography is indeed an important contribution to the understanding of public administration in our time.