Politicians should be made to feel the cost-of-living pinch

The high cost of living (C.O.L.) will come down in no time if those behind the high costs were themselves made to feel the C.O.L. pinch. The politicians give themselves huge salaries and stupendous perks and fleets of vehicles for their personal use. They get free petrol, free electricity and free telephone calls, among a host of other benefits.

The government has appointed 108 ministers, even though the country can ill afford the huge cost of maintaining these 108 ministers in their ministerial lifestyle. This cost is estimated at over Rs. 30 billion a year. While the rest of us are tightening our belts and paying taxes, the politicians are enjoying an extremely comfortable life – at our expense. Some of these politicians have enriched themselves after entering politics. Meanwhile, the 225 parliamentarians serve no useful purpose at all.

The 225 MPs, 108 Ministers, Provincial Councilors and Members of Local Bodies are enjoying a cushy life with public funds. While we tighten our belts, the politicians are doing the grand with our money. They will fly out on a holiday overseas at the drop of a hat, at our expense. It was reported that after the budget vote of December 2007, 15 ministers went on vacation. All this goes completely unchecked by the powers that be.

Inflation is 30 percent. A cup of tea is Rs. 20, a loaf of bread Rs. 45, a coconut Rs. 45, a gas cylinder Rs. 1,749, and a gallon of petrol Rs. 600. Electricity rates have gone up 40 percent. Politicians do not pay a cent in income tax. Despite objections from the public, they continue to confer upon themselves more and more tax-free privileges. Spending public funds for their convenience is a crime against the state.

Unless the politicians are made to feel the pinch, the C.O.L. will never come down. To achieve this objective, we suggest the following measures:

a) Appoint a Monitoring Committee to check and curb all unnecessary overseas travel at public expense by politicians and public servants (at any given time, there are more than 15 Sri Lankan politicians spending time overseas). Their first-class seats and dollar allowances are covered by the tax payer. Foreign exchange earned at great inconvenience by our expatriate workers is frittered away by unscrupulous politicians.

b) Politicians, like the rest of us, should pay their own fuel expenses, as well as their electricity and telephone bills.

c) The Rs. 100,000 housing allowance per minister should be withdrawn. (Did these politicians grow up in palaces?)

The politicians like to say they have come forward to work for the people. But they are actually parasites living off the people. Even their life insurance policies are paid by the people.

Politics is the most paying job around today, especially if you have no education, no private means and no sense of decent values.

By P. T. Paranahetty, Kegalle