The ten billion rupee question

Non-partisans with eyes to see and ears to hear are now unanimously of the view that both President Ranil Wickremesinghe and his government of the Rajapaksas’ Pohottuwa party are hellbent on putting off the countrywide local authority that must be held by March. The election, no doubt, has been announced and the process of accepting deposits from prospective candidates is ongoing. The media is full of visuals and images of political hopefuls, accompanied by bigwigs of the various parties going to tender their deposits at the various authorized places. The nomination period has been announced for between Jan. 18 to 21. Mr. Nimal Punchihewa, the Chairman of the National Elections Commission (NEC), is on record saying that an election date can only be announced after the receiving of nominations is completed. The new local councilors must be in office by March 20 and for that to be possible the elections must be held by March 10.

Why then all this sound and fury on whether these elections will or will not be held as required? Having plunged this country into bankruptcy with a popularly elected president and prime minister banished into the wilderness, it is clear to all but the blind that the ruling Establishment needs an election, any election even to the lowliest pradeshiya sabha, like it needs a hole in the head. This holds true for both President Ranil Wickremesinghe who was unable to secure even his own seat at the last parliamentary election in August 2020 and reduced his UNP to zero elected seats, as well as the pohottuwa parliamentary party that elected him to serve out the balance of Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s term. Hence all this hurrying and scurrying that Sri Lanka is now being treated to.

While Wickremesinghe himself has been less voluble about the emerging election scenario than some of his minions, apart from saying that funding them will be a formidable task, it is obvious to anybody that whatever UNP Chairman Wajira Abeywardene or the president’s Chief-of-Staff and National Security Advisor Sagala Ratnayake says on the subject has the president’s imprimatur. Abeywardene like some other pohottuwa grandees, has been beating the ‘no money’ drum for some time, Ratnayake accompanying a UNP group on Thursday to file nominations entertained viewers on national television by declaring that he wore two hats: one was that of the UNP’s National Organizer. The other was that of National Security Advisor to the President and his Chief-of-Staff. Wearing the first hat he would say that the UNP was ready for the election. But wearing the second he would also say this was not the time for one.

The people of Sri Lanka do not need Sagala Ratnayake to tell them that the country is today in dire straits. That is too well known to everybody feelings the pangs of hunger by skipping meals or going to the corner boutique to buy the simplest of essentials. Yes, the local elections will cost an estimated Rs. 10 billion with some reports saying that this can perhaps be reduced to eight billion. Nobody will claim that the people are wildly enthusiastic about the scheduled polls except for one reason: that of showing the ruling Establishment what the country thinks of it. Despite being reputed for short memories, they have not forgotten that it was the local elections of Feb. 10, 2018, that gave Yahapalana a clear signal of what was going to happen to it at the elections that followed. The SLPP led by Mahinda Rajapaksa (with Basil as chief organizer) was the clear winner with RW’s UNP and Sirisena’s SLFP trailing. The rulers well know people have got scant service from the various local bodies to which they pay rates. They are well aware that they reek with corruption and paid councilors are fattening on public money. They will cheers the intention of cutting down the number of elected councilors to about half the present 8,000. But they will also ask the question who increased these numbers to their present levels? In our perception the electorate will favour a “show them what we think of them election” rather than not have one for reasons of cost.

We have no illusions on the opposition’s desire to hold this election. It is as much motivated by self interest as the government’s determination to defer them by whatever means possible. Exchanges in parliament last week made this as clear as crystal. The country would also like to know what exactly happened when Public Administration and Local Government Secretary Neil Hapuhinna directed that the acceptance of deposits for the election be stopped forthwith. The order, it was reported, was rescinded within the hour and the nomination process continued. Hapuhinna, who has since apologized to the Elections Commission before which he was summoned, attributed his action to a cabinet decision. But Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardene has told parliament that there was no such decision. If so, what happened? And what follows? That is the 10 billion rupee question to which the people deserve an answer. Will they get it and will the official concerned go unscathed?

The Secretary to the Treasury and Finance Ministry, a portfolio held by the President, has gone to the Supreme Court with an affidavit affirming that the country is reeling from a severe economic crisis, that there was a high likelihood of fiscal slippage this year unless steps are taken to curtail even budgeted expenditure; and that an expenditure for an election adds further pressure on an already stressed public finance system. He has further affirmed that the Treasury would find it extremely difficult to find additional resources for an election at this critical juncture. So the ball is very much in the Supreme Court and a final decision very likely lies there.