Features
My Basil flies over the ocean; Oh, bring back my Basil to me, my cabinet!
by Rajan Philips
Basil Rajapaksa is back in cabinet. He was made a Minister even before he could become an MP. Parliament had to wait for the Executive to swear Brother Basil as Minister before the Speaker could take him in as the new National List MP. SLPP MP Jayantha Ketagoda vacated his spot on the list to make way for his political master. The actor-turned politician was preordained to make this sacrifice, and he will be rewarded, the gossip goes, with a posting down under, as Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner in Australia. Not bad at all for an Actor. Too bad for Academics permanently on a waiting list for an Aussie posting. As postings go, the one who came from Australia is now in Beijing. No one wants to go to Delhi, apparently. Everyone wants to go the US, but some want the US Ambassador in Colombo to mind her business. Especially when it comes to presidential pardons.
Basil Rajapaksa is a roving dual citizen of the US and Sri Lanka. He alternates between two homes and two countries. Basil flies east, Basil flies west, and Basil flies over the ocean. The government as a whole is flying over the cuckoo’s nest. As nursery rhymes go, we are sure to hear another adaptation in short order: Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall, Humpty Dumpty had a great fall, and all the President’s brothers and nephews could not put him together again.
Basil Rajapaksa is being brought in to change everything that is going untoward and stop the great fall. But the fall has already started. Triggered not so much by the virus as by the government’s incompetence and ineptitude. Nonetheless, the virus is still hugely out of control. The government is not out of control as such; only, it is not in control of anything much. The frustration among government supporters is palpable. The government’s critics are gloating. Even sedate editorial writers are unsparing in their mockery.
Dan Sepada?
Mahinda Rajapaksa is known to have weaponized the rhetorical question: “Dan Sepada?” That was to rhetorically remind voters that they made a huge mistake in defeating him in 2015 and electing instead the ill-married Sirisena-Wickremesinghe government. The SLPP turned it into one of its campaign slogans. Now it is boomeranging the new government. A few weeks ago, Dan Sepada? was the title of The Island (June 21) editorial. After the arrest of a person who had phoned the Mayor of Moratuwa to ask “Dan sepada?” Everyone has heard about the Mayor of Moratuwa and his vaccine antics. He is the SLPP type who got caught. But there are Mayors of other persuasions who are known to have organized special vaccine audiences. Then you hear of the GMOA and its jabs. And you ask, Dan sepada?
There is another political meme doing the rounds, this one printed on the back of a three wheeler by its owner, apparently a supporter of Sajith Premadasa. The message is that it is good Sajith Premadasa lost, otherwise the country would still be thinking that Gotabaya Rajapaksa “is a genius.” Hopefully, no one is thinking Sajith Premadasa is a genius. The country doesn’t have to think of, or look for, ready-made geniuses anymore. It has seen it all. And so quickly. Not even two years after the last presidential election, or one year after the parliamentary election that produced a two-thirds majority hoping for absolute geniuses.
The Rajapaksa elders settled on Gotabaya Rajapaksa as their presidential candidate for the 2019 election because he was still a new political commodity whom they could sell as a fresh face. But no one checked his fitness for the job, except, may be, Mahinda Rajapaksa, who is full of political instincts. And the system as a whole – election officials, the courts, the media, chose to ignore, or question, his citizenship credentials, because they did not want to stand in the way of a genius. One destined to bring deliverance to the country. Now, the clamour is for an alternative genius from the family. It will not be long before Mahinda Rajapaksa’s weaponized question is flung out again: Dan sepada?
Basil Rajapaksa is the new Finance Minister, ending heated speculations whether he would be given Finance, the portfolio held by Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa. Actually, he has been given more. BR’s Finance portfolio includes Economic Policies and Plan Implementation, all of which were under Prime Minister Rajapaksa. Mahinda Rajapaksa was Prime Minister before he became President. Now he is Prime Minister after being President. MR is also now without Finance. BR has got Finance. And GR has got everything under 20A. Nothing is working – either for the President or for the government. Don’t mention the country.
For a highflying dual citizen, Basil Rajapaksa doesn’t want to lose the common touch. So, it seems. “Though I may serve as a minister, the farmers, fisherfolk, labourers, professions, civil servants and others in this country should think that a colleague of theirs is the minister of finance,” he is reported to have said. There you go, in fell swoop Minister is all things to all men – farmer, fisher, worker, doctor, clerk! The trouble is every one of them has one grievance or other caused by the government and they are all protesting against the government. Unlike during the yahapalanaya days, the current protests are not orchestrated by political long arms. They are spontaneous responses to unbearable situations that people in all walks of life are now facing.
The country is on a split screen. In one half of the screen, you can see protestors. The other half has been showing government supporters hanging banners and lighting firecrackers to welcome the new Minister of Finance. As if they were not happy with the old Minister of Finance. It is not a new government. They are all in the same government. And as Pieter Keuneman used to say, there is no point in shuffling cabinets when you have only jokers and no aces! And two state ministers were shuffled the same day after Basil Rajapaksa was sworn in as the new Finance Minister and Mahinda Rajapaksa was re-sworn as Prime Minister minus Finance & Economic Affairs.
The two sate ministers are Shasheendra Rajapaksa, a nephew, and Mohan de Silva, not identified as part of the family. As the Economy Next noted, Sheeshandra Rajapaksa, the son of the president’s brother Minister Chamal Rajapaksa, might be holding “the longest ministry title in Sri Lanka’s history as State Minister of Organic Fertilizer Production, Supply and Regulation and the Paddy and Grains, Organic Food, Vegetables, Fruits, Chillies, Onion and Potato Cultivation Promotion, Seed Production and Advanced Technology for Agriculture.” I thought Nivard Cabraal has the longest title, but the Rajapaksa scion is beating Cabraal easily by a mile. Mohan de Silva is given a short title – Coast Conservation and Low-Lying Lands Development. To keep the average title length manageable. Isn’t it curious, that Sri Lanka should have not only a large cabinet, but also each Minister should be padded with multiple portfolios? Or, put another way, dan sepada?
There is no point in going into an analysis of the taxonomy or typology of the state-family system that is now unfolding in Sri Lanka. The point is – it is a non-system pretending to be a system. The reprehensible Saudi state-family system has a long tradition. There is no such tradition in Sri Lanka. And you cannot create one by constitutional chicanery. There are no clever-enough lawyers to do even that. There is power, but there is no government. There are ministers, but there is no competence. There are supporters, but there is no satisfaction. But there are people, and they are suffering. That is the stark reality.
The Basil who flies over the ocean, is not the same as “My Bonnie who lies over the ocean,” the Scottish folk song that apparently was sung by the supporters of “Bonnie Prince Charlie” (Prince Charles Stuart) who went into exile after losing a battle with the English in 1746. That is a historical segue to end this piece with a note about the changing faces in the world of sports. The English Football Team is in the finals of a major tournament for the first time in 55 years. They have so far beaten every team they faced in the current Euro 2020. Except Scotland. The unheralded highlanders held their Brexit English cousins to a goal-less tie at Wembley in one of the early round matches.
Sports World Changes
It is a matter of opinion if sporting events are a nefarious distraction from more serious life matters – such as politics. Noam Chomsky apparently thinks so in his Manufacturing Consent, the 1988 book by Chomsky and (Edward) Herman. But sports have been a welcome distraction during the pandemic even without spectators. Japan seems determined to go ahead with the 2020 Olympics, already postponed by a year, even though the country is in a state of emergency and the government of Yoshihide Suga is in some political trouble because of this decision. Of course, there will be no spectators allowed. The Olympics are set to open in Tokyo on July 23. Tennis and Football are seeing epochal changes in London.
Roger Federer, the immensely gifted flower child of tennis from Switzerland, lost his Wimbledon Quarter Finals match in straight sets to Hubert Hurkacz, a promising but relatively unknown 25 year old from Poland. Mr. Federer will turn forty in August, and he may not play again at the All England Club. That would mark the end of an era without much fanfare. Unlike in other sports like cricket or football where players announce their retirement and are given a farewell, tennis players do not usually announce their retirement before a match, and if you lose, as happened to Roger Federer, you have no chance of being given formal farewell. Federer was of course given a standing ovation, much longer this time than when he used to win, but there was no farewell. In fairness, he is not sure what his future plans are going to be.
For nearly twenty years, Roger Federer, Spaniard Rafael Nadal and Serbian Novak Djokovic have been dominating the tennis world with a virtual monopoly over the four grand slam tournaments (Australian, French, Wimbledon and US Open). Federer and Nadal have each won twenty of them, and Djokovic with 19 trophies is set to match and surpass them. Djokovic is the only one remaining at Wimbledon this year. He is the overwhelming favourite to win, but if he were to lose it would be passing of the torch to a new generation of players.
Wimbledon finals are today (Sunday) and later in the evening, elsewhere in London, England will be playing Italy in the final match of Euro 2020. Fifty five years ago, in 1966, at the same Wembley venue, England won its only World Cup beating Germany in the finals. England has since not been in the finals of any major football tournament. The current English team is not only young and talented, but is also the most diverse with players of colour and of Irish origin. The team is also political, with players taking the knee at the start of every game to show solidarity with social movements for equality, inclusivity, and racial justice. Whoever wins the game, England or Italy, sports can also be a moral weapon for social causes. Not just a distraction.
by Dr Gotabhya Ranasinghe
Senior Consultant Cardiologist
National Hospital Sri Lanka
When we sought a meeting with Hon Dr. Ramesh Pathirana, Minister of Health, he graciously cleared his busy schedule to accommodate us. Renowned for his attentive listening and deep understanding, Minister Pathirana is dedicated to advancing the health sector. His openness and transparency exemplify the qualities of an exemplary politician and minister.
Dr. Palitha Mahipala, the current Health Secretary, demonstrates both commendable enthusiasm and unwavering support. This combination of attributes makes him a highly compatible colleague for the esteemed Minister of Health.
Our discussion centered on a project that has been in the works for the past 30 years, one that no other minister had managed to advance.
Minister Pathirana, however, recognized the project’s significance and its potential to revolutionize care for heart patients.
The project involves the construction of a state-of-the-art facility at the premises of the National Hospital Colombo. The project’s location within the premises of the National Hospital underscores its importance and relevance to the healthcare infrastructure of the nation.
This facility will include a cardiology building and a tertiary care center, equipped with the latest technology to handle and treat all types of heart-related conditions and surgeries.
Securing funding was a major milestone for this initiative. Minister Pathirana successfully obtained approval for a $40 billion loan from the Asian Development Bank. With the funding in place, the foundation stone is scheduled to be laid in September this year, and construction will begin in January 2025.
This project guarantees a consistent and uninterrupted supply of stents and related medications for heart patients. As a result, patients will have timely access to essential medical supplies during their treatment and recovery. By securing these critical resources, the project aims to enhance patient outcomes, minimize treatment delays, and maintain the highest standards of cardiac care.
Upon its fruition, this monumental building will serve as a beacon of hope and healing, symbolizing the unwavering dedication to improving patient outcomes and fostering a healthier society.We anticipate a future marked by significant progress and positive outcomes in Sri Lanka’s cardiovascular treatment landscape within the foreseeable timeframe.
by Fr. Emmanuel Fernando, OMI
Jesuit Fr. Aloysius Pieris (affectionately called Fr. Aloy) celebrated his 90th birthday on April 9, 2024 and I, as the editor of our Oblate Journal, THE MISSIONARY OBLATE had gone to press by that time. Immediately I decided to publish an article, appreciating the untiring selfless services he continues to offer for inter-Faith dialogue, the renewal of the Catholic Church, his concern for the poor and the suffering Sri Lankan masses and to me, the present writer.
It was in 1988, when I was appointed Director of the Oblate Scholastics at Ampitiya by the then Oblate Provincial Fr. Anselm Silva, that I came to know Fr. Aloy more closely. Knowing well his expertise in matters spiritual, theological, Indological and pastoral, and with the collaborative spirit of my companion-formators, our Oblate Scholastics were sent to Tulana, the Research and Encounter Centre, Kelaniya, of which he is the Founder-Director, for ‘exposure-programmes’ on matters spiritual, biblical, theological and pastoral. Some of these dimensions according to my view and that of my companion-formators, were not available at the National Seminary, Ampitiya.
Ever since that time, our Oblate formators/ accompaniers at the Oblate Scholasticate, Ampitiya , have continued to send our Oblate Scholastics to Tulana Centre for deepening their insights and convictions regarding matters needed to serve the people in today’s context. Fr. Aloy also had tried very enthusiastically with the Oblate team headed by Frs. Oswald Firth and Clement Waidyasekara to begin a Theologate, directed by the Religious Congregations in Sri Lanka, for the contextual formation/ accompaniment of their members. It should very well be a desired goal of the Leaders / Provincials of the Religious Congregations.
Besides being a formator/accompanier at the Oblate Scholasticate, I was entrusted also with the task of editing and publishing our Oblate journal, ‘The Missionary Oblate’. To maintain the quality of the journal I continue to depend on Fr. Aloy for his thought-provoking and stimulating articles on Biblical Spirituality, Biblical Theology and Ecclesiology. I am very grateful to him for his generous assistance. Of late, his writings on renewal of the Church, initiated by Pope St. John XX111 and continued by Pope Francis through the Synodal path, published in our Oblate journal, enable our readers to focus their attention also on the needed renewal in the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka. Fr. Aloy appreciated very much the Synodal path adopted by the Jesuit Pope Francis for the renewal of the Church, rooted very much on prayerful discernment. In my Religious and presbyteral life, Fr.Aloy continues to be my spiritual animator / guide and ongoing formator / acccompanier.
Fr. Aloysius Pieris, BA Hons (Lond), LPh (SHC, India), STL (PFT, Naples), PhD (SLU/VC), ThD (Tilburg), D.Ltt (KU), has been one of the eminent Asian theologians well recognized internationally and one who has lectured and held visiting chairs in many universities both in the West and in the East. Many members of Religious Congregations from Asian countries have benefited from his lectures and guidance in the East Asian Pastoral Institute (EAPI) in Manila, Philippines. He had been a Theologian consulted by the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences for many years. During his professorship at the Gregorian University in Rome, he was called to be a member of a special group of advisers on other religions consulted by Pope Paul VI.
Fr. Aloy is the author of more than 30 books and well over 500 Research Papers. Some of his books and articles have been translated and published in several countries. Among those books, one can find the following: 1) The Genesis of an Asian Theology of Liberation (An Autobiographical Excursus on the Art of Theologising in Asia, 2) An Asian Theology of Liberation, 3) Providential Timeliness of Vatican 11 (a long-overdue halt to a scandalous millennium, 4) Give Vatican 11 a chance, 5) Leadership in the Church, 6) Relishing our faith in working for justice (Themes for study and discussion), 7) A Message meant mainly, not exclusively for Jesuits (Background information necessary for helping Francis renew the Church), 8) Lent in Lanka (Reflections and Resolutions, 9) Love meets wisdom (A Christian Experience of Buddhism, 10) Fire and Water 11) God’s Reign for God’s poor, 12) Our Unhiddden Agenda (How we Jesuits work, pray and form our men). He is also the Editor of two journals, Vagdevi, Journal of Religious Reflection and Dialogue, New Series.
Fr. Aloy has a BA in Pali and Sanskrit from the University of London and a Ph.D in Buddhist Philosophy from the University of Sri Lankan, Vidyodaya Campus. On Nov. 23, 2019, he was awarded the prestigious honorary Doctorate of Literature (D.Litt) by the Chancellor of the University of Kelaniya, the Most Venerable Welamitiyawe Dharmakirthi Sri Kusala Dhamma Thera.
Fr. Aloy continues to be a promoter of Gospel values and virtues. Justice as a constitutive dimension of love and social concern for the downtrodden masses are very much noted in his life and work. He had very much appreciated the commitment of the late Fr. Joseph (Joe) Fernando, the National Director of the Social and Economic Centre (SEDEC) for the poor.
In Sri Lanka, a few religious Congregations – the Good Shepherd Sisters, the Christian Brothers, the Marist Brothers and the Oblates – have invited him to animate their members especially during their Provincial Congresses, Chapters and International Conferences. The mainline Christian Churches also have sought his advice and followed his seminars. I, for one, regret very much, that the Sri Lankan authorities of the Catholic Church –today’s Hierarchy—- have not sought Fr.
Aloy’s expertise for the renewal of the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka and thus have not benefited from the immense store of wisdom and insight that he can offer to our local Church while the Sri Lankan bishops who governed the Catholic church in the immediate aftermath of the Second Vatican Council (Edmund Fernando OMI, Anthony de Saram, Leo Nanayakkara OSB, Frank Marcus Fernando, Paul Perera,) visited him and consulted him on many matters. Among the Tamil Bishops, Bishop Rayappu Joseph was keeping close contact with him and Bishop J. Deogupillai hosted him and his team visiting him after the horrible Black July massacre of Tamils.
Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement
By Gomi Senadhira
senadhiragomi@gmail.com
“You might tell fairy tales, but the progress of a country cannot be achieved through such narratives. A country cannot be developed by making false promises. The country moved backward because of the electoral promises made by political parties throughout time. We have witnessed that the ultimate result of this is the country becoming bankrupt. Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet.” – President Ranil Wickremesinghe, 2024 Budget speech
Any Sri Lankan would agree with the above words of President Wickremesinghe on the false promises our politicians and officials make and the fairy tales they narrate which bankrupted this country. So, to understand this, let’s look at one such fairy tale with lots of false promises; Ranil Wickremesinghe’s greatest achievement in the area of international trade and investment promotion during the Yahapalana period, Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (SLSFTA).
It is appropriate and timely to do it now as Finance Minister Wickremesinghe has just presented to parliament a bill on the National Policy on Economic Transformation which includes the establishment of an Office for International Trade and the Sri Lanka Institute of Economics and International Trade.
Was SLSFTA a “Cleverly negotiated Free Trade Agreement” as stated by the (former) Minister of Development Strategies and International Trade Malik Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate on the SLSFTA in July 2018, or a colossal blunder covered up with lies, false promises, and fairy tales? After SLSFTA was signed there were a number of fairy tales published on this agreement by the Ministry of Development Strategies and International, Institute of Policy Studies, and others.
However, for this article, I would like to limit my comments to the speech by Minister Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate, and the two most important areas in the agreement which were covered up with lies, fairy tales, and false promises, namely: revenue loss for Sri Lanka and Investment from Singapore. On the other important area, “Waste products dumping” I do not want to comment here as I have written extensively on the issue.
1. The revenue loss
During the Parliamentary Debate in July 2018, Minister Samarawickrama stated “…. let me reiterate that this FTA with Singapore has been very cleverly negotiated by us…. The liberalisation programme under this FTA has been carefully designed to have the least impact on domestic industry and revenue collection. We have included all revenue sensitive items in the negative list of items which will not be subject to removal of tariff. Therefore, 97.8% revenue from Customs duty is protected. Our tariff liberalisation will take place over a period of 12-15 years! In fact, the revenue earned through tariffs on goods imported from Singapore last year was Rs. 35 billion.
The revenue loss for over the next 15 years due to the FTA is only Rs. 733 million– which when annualised, on average, is just Rs. 51 million. That is just 0.14% per year! So anyone who claims the Singapore FTA causes revenue loss to the Government cannot do basic arithmetic! Mr. Speaker, in conclusion, I call on my fellow members of this House – don’t mislead the public with baseless criticism that is not grounded in facts. Don’t look at petty politics and use these issues for your own political survival.”
I was surprised to read the minister’s speech because an article published in January 2018 in “The Straits Times“, based on information released by the Singaporean Negotiators stated, “…. With the FTA, tariff savings for Singapore exports are estimated to hit $10 million annually“.
As the annual tariff savings (that is the revenue loss for Sri Lanka) calculated by the Singaporean Negotiators, Singaporean $ 10 million (Sri Lankan rupees 1,200 million in 2018) was way above the rupees’ 733 million revenue loss for 15 years estimated by the Sri Lankan negotiators, it was clear to any observer that one of the parties to the agreement had not done the basic arithmetic!
Six years later, according to a report published by “The Morning” newspaper, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) on 7th May 2024, Mr Samarawickrama’s chief trade negotiator K.J. Weerasinghehad had admitted “…. that forecasted revenue loss for the Government of Sri Lanka through the Singapore FTA is Rs. 450 million in 2023 and Rs. 1.3 billion in 2024.”
If these numbers are correct, as tariff liberalisation under the SLSFTA has just started, we will pass Rs 2 billion very soon. Then, the question is how Sri Lanka’s trade negotiators made such a colossal blunder. Didn’t they do their basic arithmetic? If they didn’t know how to do basic arithmetic they should have at least done their basic readings. For example, the headline of the article published in The Straits Times in January 2018 was “Singapore, Sri Lanka sign FTA, annual savings of $10m expected”.
Anyway, as Sri Lanka’s chief negotiator reiterated at the COPF meeting that “…. since 99% of the tariffs in Singapore have zero rates of duty, Sri Lanka has agreed on 80% tariff liberalisation over a period of 15 years while expecting Singapore investments to address the imbalance in trade,” let’s turn towards investment.
Investment from Singapore
In July 2018, speaking during the Parliamentary Debate on the FTA this is what Minister Malik Samarawickrama stated on investment from Singapore, “Already, thanks to this FTA, in just the past two-and-a-half months since the agreement came into effect we have received a proposal from Singapore for investment amounting to $ 14.8 billion in an oil refinery for export of petroleum products. In addition, we have proposals for a steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million), sugar refinery ($ 200 million). This adds up to more than $ 16.05 billion in the pipeline on these projects alone.
And all of these projects will create thousands of more jobs for our people. In principle approval has already been granted by the BOI and the investors are awaiting the release of land the environmental approvals to commence the project.
I request the Opposition and those with vested interests to change their narrow-minded thinking and join us to develop our country. We must always look at what is best for the whole community, not just the few who may oppose. We owe it to our people to courageously take decisions that will change their lives for the better.”
According to the media report I quoted earlier, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) Chief Negotiator Weerasinghe has admitted that Sri Lanka was not happy with overall Singapore investments that have come in the past few years in return for the trade liberalisation under the Singapore-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement. He has added that between 2021 and 2023 the total investment from Singapore had been around $162 million!
What happened to those projects worth $16 billion negotiated, thanks to the SLSFTA, in just the two-and-a-half months after the agreement came into effect and approved by the BOI? I do not know about the steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million) and sugar refinery ($ 200 million).
However, story of the multibillion-dollar investment in the Petroleum Refinery unfolded in a manner that would qualify it as the best fairy tale with false promises presented by our politicians and the officials, prior to 2019 elections.
Though many Sri Lankans got to know, through the media which repeatedly highlighted a plethora of issues surrounding the project and the questionable credentials of the Singaporean investor, the construction work on the Mirrijiwela Oil Refinery along with the cement factory began on the24th of March 2019 with a bang and Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and his ministers along with the foreign and local dignitaries laid the foundation stones.
That was few months before the 2019 Presidential elections. Inaugurating the construction work Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said the projects will create thousands of job opportunities in the area and surrounding districts.
The oil refinery, which was to be built over 200 acres of land, with the capacity to refine 200,000 barrels of crude oil per day, was to generate US$7 billion of exports and create 1,500 direct and 3,000 indirect jobs. The construction of the refinery was to be completed in 44 months. Four years later, in August 2023 the Cabinet of Ministers approved the proposal presented by President Ranil Wickremesinghe to cancel the agreement with the investors of the refinery as the project has not been implemented! Can they explain to the country how much money was wasted to produce that fairy tale?
It is obvious that the President, ministers, and officials had made huge blunders and had deliberately misled the public and the parliament on the revenue loss and potential investment from SLSFTA with fairy tales and false promises.
As the president himself said, a country cannot be developed by making false promises or with fairy tales and these false promises and fairy tales had bankrupted the country. “Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet”.
(The writer, a specialist and an activist on trade and development issues . )
