Barmecide feast and ‘Lotus heaven’

We are not short of leaders who claim to have laboured tirelessly to achieve national progress. Never do they miss an opportunity to make a public display of their patriotism, and boast of what they call the country’s achievements under their governments. But the abysmal report cards of these worthies have come to light again.

The Professional Forum of Physicians on Medical and Civil Rights (PFPMCR) has made a shocking revelation. It has said that according to the findings of a health survey conducted in the village of Walsapugala, as many as 80% of children there are affected by nutrition disorders with undernutrition and malnutrition among them amounting to 50% and 30% respectively. The plight of these children must have shaken the conscience of every Sri Lankan except those who have been helping themselves to public funds, which could have been used to feed hungry mouths.

The district where Walsapugala is situated is of significance. It is Hambantota, the stronghold of the Rajapaksa family, which has produced Prime Ministers, Presidents and Cabinet ministers. We bet our bottom dollar that no one connected to the Rajapaksas or other wealthy politicians from that area is among the malnourished children of Hambantota. The predicament of the children of Walsapugala represents in microcosm what has befallen the country under successive governments, especially the Rajapaksa administrations.

Hambantota is believed to have benefited from the Rajapaksas’ expensive infrastructural development drive; it boasts an international airport, an international conference hall, an international cricket ground and an international port. The road network there compares with the best in the world. But the living conditions of the people of Hambantota have not improved, at all, if the severe nutrition disorders affecting them is any indication. The same is true of their counterparts elsewhere.

If wasteful expenditure amounting to billions of dollars on useless infrastructural development projects had been curtailed and those funds channelled for agricultural development, children’s nutritional needs could have been taken care of. Many Sri Lankans however seem to enjoy the Barmecide feast their crafty rulers host. The PFPMCR revelation has come while Sri Lankans, troubled by the pangs of hunger, are feasting their eyes on a tall tower in Colombo. They are queuing up near the Lotus Tower to pay for elevator rides to the top of it and take a bird’s eye view of the slums and shanties in Colombo, among other things. A person who visited the tower has likened his experience to a trip to heaven, of all places!

One of the main causes of the current economic meltdown which has led to the prevailing food crisis, soaring inflation and a rise in the rate of malnutrition is heavy borrowings for mega projects that hardly yield any returns but have helped politicians and their cronies enrich themselves. Economic inequality has also contributed to the prevalent nutrition disorders. But those who are at the levers of power do not seem keen to curtail waste, sort out the economy and grant relief to the people. Instead, they are busy feathering their nests. The colony of leeches (read the Cabinet) is expected to expand further.

PFPMCR Chairman Dr. Chamal Sanjeewa has told the media that most schools in the Hambantota District have cancelled morning assemblies because a large number of students faint due to hunger. A similar situation prevails in other districts as well, according to the Ceylon Teachers’ Union.

Many educated, talented youth have already left the country, and others will do so, given half a chance. Long queues are seen near the visa sections of foreign embassies in Colombo. Children are starving and cannot stand erect, much less concentrate on their studies. There is no future for a country which does not care to look after its youth and children. Worryingly, political leaders are busy trying to retain power or regain it; religious leaders are worried about only one thing—the abolition of electricity subsidy for places of worship; business leaders are safeguarding their own interests at the expense of the public, and most people are looking forward to viewing Sri Pada from the top of the Lotus Tower!