Features
Where is the urgency? All Party huddle & boycott, and Supreme Court challenge
by Rajan Philips
No one at the All Party Conference on Wednesday showed any urgency about addressing the severe shortages of essentials – food, medicine, milk, cooking gas and fuel that people are experiencing. Prices of all essentials have become unaffordable for most people, and the supplies are not enough even for the few who can afford them. No one at the APC asked questions about the procurement and supply situation involving consumer essentials. The next day in parliament there was stupid banter about potential crossovers from the boycotting SJB to government but no serious questions or answers about essential supplies.
The government may now be forced to come up with answers before the Supreme Court where the Bar Association, on Friday, filed an unprecedented fundamental rights application against the entire government, asking the Court to direct, among others, “the Cabinet of Ministers and/or any other Respondents to immediately consult with all the relevant stakeholders and independent experts to formulate and implement policies to provide uninterrupted access and to provide concessions in relation to the prices of essential goods and services to the people including LP gas, fuel, electricity, milk powder, medicine and food and to report to the Supreme Court of the policies formulated on the above.” No one asked for this so forcefully either at the APC or in parliament.
The only answer so far is the empty boast in parliament by Agricultural Minister Mahindananada Aluthgamage that a “special mechanism was in the making to supply rice at a reasonable price during the upcoming festive season.” A mechanism in the making to provide rice for the New Year! Nice, but at what price? And what about rice or food availability before and after the April New Year. The Minister went further and as reported, “told Parliament that he could guarantee that there won’t be a food crisis” in the country. People have become all too familiar with this government’s broken guarantees. To make matters worse there are fears now about global food and fuel crises with both high prices and scarce supplies, as a result of the war in Ukraine. And Sri Lanka is hardly in a position to weather these new storms that are already spreading.
International observers have noted the growing ubiquity of protests over rising food prices and shortages in Albania, Iraq, Sri Lanka and Sudan among others. David Beasley, the executive director of the UN Word Food Programme (WFP) has commented that the food situation in many countries today is worse than the 2011 crisis of rising food prices that triggered the Arab Spring uprisings in Egypt and across North Africa. There is much discontent in Sri Lanka, but no one is sensing any revolutionary spring. The regime is clearly unstable but no one is scheming to topple it except through the electoral process. Yet, no one can predict how the public mood will change and what it will precipitate if the current shortages and high prices continue to worsen and the government fails to provide relief to the people.
That is why it is bewildering that neither APC attendees nor its boycotters have been showing any urgency about ensuring and monitoring a steady supply of consumer essentials. The government if it is organized, as it ought to be, should be putting out daily information about current supply levels of each essential commodity; the local availability of any of them; and the import requirements along with procurement arrangements including foreign exchange allocations, exporting country, as well as shipping, timing and local distribution. Hopefully, the Supreme Court will order the government to do this daily.
The supply situation is so dire and unpredictable that a government that cannot provide daily information on inventory levels does not deserve to continue in power. Equally, opposition parties do not deserve to become government unless they demonstrate their superior capabilities by constantly pressuring the government to provide inventory information, or do their own research and indicate how they would manage matters differently.
Monitoring inventory levels will be of no use unless the government can find foreign exchange to procure imports. At the least, inventory updates will inform the government and parliament the minimum foreign exchange levels that will be required to maintain at least subsistence levels of essential supplies. And where will the government get the requisite from – India, China, and at long last the IMF? Such information will also be useful in negotiations with the IMF to ensure priority allocation of sufficient foreign exchange for basic food supplies while restructuring debt payments, as well as for helping those with dwindling means to meet their basic needs.
APC and Boycott Politics
Astonishingly at the APC, the Central Bank Governor who has been simply pigheaded in resisting IMF help for over two years, and in prioritizing debt payment over importing food and fuel essentials, was asked to deliver a lecture on the country’s economic situation. The Minister of Finance, whose business it was to address the conference, kept mum, as he has been for the last three months, until Ranil Wickremesinghe needled him and forced him to admit that, in spite of its repeated denials, the government in fact had received the IMF’s Report on Sri Lanka, albeit in draft form. Mr. Wickremesinghe was at his cynical best as he put Nivard Cabraal in his place, and obliged the President to apologise to the Conference for the Governor’s silly remarks about the previous administration.
Besides government representatives, the APC was attended by a motley crowd of political parties with Ranil Wickremesinghe playing the elder statesman role. His bête noire, Maithripala Sirisena, who is credited for the APC idea, was also in attendance. Dr Tissa Vitarana was reduced to being the emissary, along with Ven. Athuraliye Rathana Thera, for the 11-Party alliance which is curiously constrained to stay in the government while opposing the Cabinet.
The two main opposition parties, the SJB and the JVP, boycotted the APC, and they were joined by the Plantation Tamil political parties, including even the CWC. The new, post-grandfather, generation of CWC leaders have been assiduously cultivated by Mahinda Rajapaksa, but they are fed up with Gotabaya Rajapaksa on account of his organic fertilizer craziness and his apparent refusal to listen to their concerns. The CWC leaders had an audience with Mahinda Rajapaksa before announcing their boycott of Gotabaya Rajapaksa. Almost all other Tamil and Muslim Parties would seem to have attended the Conference. The TNA was a surprise attendee considering the number of times the TNA leaders were rebuffed by the President in their persistent efforts to have a face-to-face meeting with the man. There is no need to read too much into this for there is no certainty about the future of the APC.
One unintended side benefit of the APC is that it will keep the President publicly engaged in civilian politics and restrain him from straying into non-civilian or military options, given his military background. At the same time, the level of outrage in the country should dissuade even military people thinking about political takeovers. There is no tradition for it and the fear of international isolation would also be a serious deterrent. But preventing military intervention is not the main purpose of politics. The only purpose now is to prevent mass starvation and social chaos.
At the APC, the government would seem to have agreed to redirect its resources from development programs to essential welfare measures. The Minister of Finance has also indicated that he will present to parliament an updated or interim budget based on the current situation and needs of the people. So, the Minister would be back in parliament and parliament can resume business and oversight of the government’s actions on the economy and the country’s finances. The SJB and the JVP will have the opportunity to hold the government to account and to show what they have to offer if and when they get their turn to govern.
What was not discussed at the APC or by the two boycotting parties is the government’s purported approach to engaging the IMF. Even before the President announced the decision to seek IMF’s help, the government appointed a 11-member Economic Council (which is really a sub-committee of Cabinet), and a 16-member Advisory Committee comprising as many businessmen as economic experts. The Advisory Committee has since recommended the “immediate appointment of a Technical Team consisting of officials representing the Central Bank and the Treasury to formulate programs proposing international financial assistance,” as well as the appointment “of a financial advisor and a legal advisor,” and still another “expert team to assist the Finance Minister.”
If all this is not enough, Cabinet Spokesman Ramesh Pathirana has now announced that the government will be appointing “a technical committee to help negotiate with the International Monetary Fund and will also a hire a legal firm to assist with the process.” And the process “will be headed by Professor GL Pieris and also honorable minister of justice, PC Ali Sabry and also assisted by Central Bank Governor and Treasury Secretary.” Go Figure. And to make everything bizarre, the legal firm will be an international legal firm! Perhaps the new international legal firm will also be enlisted to assist the Attorney General with his arguments to the Supreme Court in the fundamental rights application that the national Bar Association filed on Friday.
It is not clear whether it is only ignorance and incompetence that is at work here, or whether there is something clever by half going on in the government. Whatever it might be, it is not auguring well for what needs to be urgently done to bring supplies and redress to the people, and slowly start the heavy work of putting back the economy on track. The latter task is beyond the competence of this government on its best days. The country is constrained to depend on the government to carry out the immediate task of providing the basic essentials of life even on its worst days. There is no urgency at the political level. Will the Supreme Court be able to inject the fierce urgency that is badly needed in government for the sake of the people?
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 . )
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