Features
We should get ready
By Praying Mantis
This piece is all about getting ready for elections. God forbid… no, no, no and no… not the insignificant as well as totally worthless Local Government and Provincial Government Elections. It is all about the elections that really matter; the Presidential Election and the General Election, which are due in a few years’ time. Many who read this article may think that I need to have my head examined as there are over two years for those elections. But the truth is that although the said elections are way off, we need to contemplate the way to go from now itself. We simply have to reflect on what has happened over the last few decades and what the contenders are offering for the future. It is not a secret that all of them, without any exceptions, would be offering the moon and the earth to the inhabitants of this island which is said to be a land like no other. Of course, the million-dollar question is whether we believe them.
Sri Lankans are notorious for their extremely short memories. In such a scenario, all of what we are being put through now are likely to be forgotten in a few months, leave alone a couple of years. Yes…, I said ‘put through’ because, all except perhaps the henchmen and the people who control the statute, are being put through a wringer so as to extract the last drops of peaceful, happy existence in this country. When election time comes, the political dregs of all hues that we have around, will start to shout again even from the rooftops promising us milk, honey, prosperity, wealth, splendid governance, superb health and even everything else that is really nice. The gullible public will most conveniently not remember the partisanships, the hardships, the corruption, the lawlessness and everything else that is contemptible, that has gone under the bridge during these terrible times. The farmers, agriculturists, importers, villagers and workers of all sorts will listen to the rhetoric, the false promises and the lies of these miserable legislators and will cheerfully go and vote for the villains of the piece of the last couple of decades.
The populace of this country should take note of the perpetual and unbelievably cunning ways in which politicians continue to dupe them. When they are in power, “you scratch my back and I will scratch yours” mentality and camaraderie amongst all politicians of many different colours and loyalties is there for all to see; perhaps a classic example of unity in diversity. Even the suspected and even proven miscreants are not put behind bars. One lot in power will never take steps to jail people from other camps. That is because of the lingering fear that if and when roles are reversed, then they would be paid back with interest. The only politician who was put behind bars in recent years was just the person who wagged his uncontrollable tongue at the judiciary. The judicial machinery got into gear ever so rapidly and the guy was made to pay the price. Yet for all that, some of the others who were accused of various crimes, even far more serious ones, and well known to be the perpetrators of all of them, have not even been brought before the judiciary by the law enforcement agencies.
It is not at all common for politicians to admit their faults and mistakes. We have hardly ever, if not never, seen the spectacle of a politician saying mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa. Even in the face of an indefensible faux pas, they will try their best to wriggle out and abrogate responsibility for the entire fiasco to others. On reflection, it is impossible to find a political party or a politician graceful enough to admit their past mistakes. If we can find even one, then pigs will fly. All political parties in the country today, without any exceptions whatsoever, are guilty of various types of wrongdoings and misdemeanours, in the not-too-distant past, some even to the extent of endangering democracy and our beloved motherland itself.
A case in point is the present Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) set. If we are to take their current policies and pontifications at face-value, they are quite reasonable; in fact, just what we need. They promise a whole lot of progressive manoeuvres, together with promises of firmly dealing with political miscreants and scoundrels of the past. They are the only people who seem to have been able to provide verbal fireworks of a kind of devastating type in our Parliament. However, can we trust them? Perhaps not, as there is no guarantee that they will be any different once they get power into their hands. It is said that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. The current band of sahodarayas or comrades of the JVP have not had the guts to come out and say that they made mistakes from the early seventies of the last century. They caused mayhem and threatened even the very existence of law and order on more than one occasion. They have not even bothered to come before the people, admit their past mistakes and apologise to the countrymen and countrywomen of our Motherland for all types of transgressions that they have inflicted on this country. They do not seem to realise that if they come clean in all honesty, the populace might; just might start to think, ‘OK, they made mistakes and they have the courage to admit them, let us give them a chance’. If they listen to reason, the sahodarayas and the sahodariyas will do just that. Then, and only then, will they stand head and shoulders above the rest of them all. The government-backed newspapers brand them as a spent old force but if they show up with honesty and a genuine desire to make a change for the better, egg and stone attacks notwithstanding, all other political parties will learn a really bitter lesson. It is also most important for them to come forward as a single unified party and not be a part of a coalition or a ‘sandhanaya’. This writer hopes that the likes of the prince, Vijitha, T-win, Lal the kantha, Bee-mal, h-rini, Sunil the handun …., together with a conglomerate of assorted comrades would take these random musings seriously. They must realise that our people have tried all other so-called front-runner parties and are sick to their back teeth with them. They will not think twice about trying out another novel lot. So, keep that firmly in your mind JVP, if you really want to get anywhere in this rat race.
Then of course there is the daasa guy from the opposing force who routinely shouts at a pretty high decibel level even when he has to convey something that is not of vital importance to the people. I do not think he realises that the sound level is not the thing that makes an impact, except on our eardrums. It is the substance that is vocalised that is of the essence. He should perhaps learn a lesson from a very prominent and very senior member of the powerful ‘clan’ who even when he held the highest position of the land, never raised his voice. He would speak most attractively and really modulate his voice as a part and parcel of his charismatic personality. In addition to the connotations on the sound level, the lot in that party of daasa are promising various types of corrections they would take to counteract the misguided and disastrous steps taken by the current lot in power. Of course, they do not mince their words and are on an attack mode all the time, with the ear-splitting voice blaring at the highest pitch. However, they and their affiliated colleagues have also promised all kinds of things in the past but their performance record is rather abysmal. Their henchmen too have tremendously benefited from all kinds of crafty manoeuvres and even blatant scams in the past. They too have not had the courage to ever come before the people and admit their mistakes. They probably think it is infra dig, but the truth is that the general public hold them responsible for all those misdemeanours and transgressions.
Then there is a cluster of other little lots of also-ran types who are not even worth bothering about. There are the likes of dehydrated pumpkins, the overfed rounded ones, the old man with dubious tendencies, the contingent of believers in extremism as well as fanaticism, and all kinds of we-are-also-there types. They are thoroughbred nincompoops and ignoramuses.
Judge all of our politicians and every single one of them by what they have promised in the past and what they have delivered; by what they have said they will do and what they have actually done and whether they are empathetic to their country-people or whether they have been the nasty vultures that sucked the life blood of the populace for personal benefits and those of their hangers-on. Did they pamper to the whims and fancies of their henchmen, even if those worthies were going against all that is decent and lawful? Most unfortunately and quite sadly, the answer is in the affirmative in the case of the majority of our legislators.
Niccolò Machiavelli is deemed to be the representative par excellence of the lack of morality and ethics in politics. The theory that ‘the end justifies the means’ encapsulates his political and moral thought. The popular conception is that Machiavelli’s political methods are amoral, evil, but yet perhaps rational and pragmatic in a perverse sort of way. It was advice like “It is necessary for a prince wishing to hold his own to know how to do wrong”, offered by Niccolò Machiavelli in The Prince, that made its author’s name synonymous with the ruthless use of power.
It was John Fitzgerald Kennedy, the iconic President of the United States of America, who came out with the oft quoted line in his 1961 Inaugural Address “My fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country“. We should constantly remind our set of politicians of all hues that the same sentiments apply equally well to them as far as what they can do for our beautiful country and certainly not what our Motherland could do for them.
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 . )
US sports envoys to Lanka to champion youth development
Rahuman questions sudden cancellation of leave of CEB employees
