Koslanda tragedy and budgets
View(s):The Koslanda tragedy in which an unknown number of people have died is one of the worst local natural tragedies in recent times.
The Business Times condoles with those who have lost their loved ones and would do everything possible to support and assist the victims in rebuilding their lives including the children orphaned by the disaster.
While this may not be the time to make accusations and ‘we-told-you-so’ statements, authorities have in the past warned of landslides in these and other areas. However most residents are reluctant to move from their homes and there lies the problem, for which a more serious discussion needs to take place to avert any further tragedies of this sort. Geologists like Prof. C.B. Dissanayake and those from the National Disaster Management Centre have issued repeated warnings on landslides.
Another matter of concern is the viability of plantations and the government, in particular, Treasury Secretary Dr. P.B. Jayasundera’s position that the plantations need to wake up and act like other progressive sectors like apparel.
With rubber prices crashing and tea just turning round the corner, plantations are left with little to undertake other social obligations even though a lot is done in these areas. However infrastructure investment and re-location of families precariously living on hilltops prone to landslides is turning to be a top priority for which little funds are available and some quick solutions with government input need to be found.
Budget no more
As well-known already the budget smacks of an election-related one. So many concessions, yet no clear indication as to how these would be funded.
Another problem is issues of transparency and accountability in budget presentations. For example, for the past few years, expenditure and revenue proposals/figures are not announced; rather they are tabled and have mistakes as revealed in Parliament on Saturday.
How many people have access to these key financial figures which are uploaded on a website? The majority of Sri Lankans have access to radio or TV and need to see these figures if they are to make their own judgement on the viability of these proposals which require huge funding.
Handouts may be necessary but these concessions come from the pockets of everyone through taxes. Nothing is free in this country. Someone else pays for subsidies.
Senior economist Dr. S.S. Colombage says in his article on this page that the budget proposals clearly show that Sri Lanka is moving to a state-driven economy from a market-driven economy. Is there a policy shift? If so the people should be informed (transparency).
Another issue is GDP growth and per capita income vis-à-vis the quality of life. There is growth and rising incomes as enunciated by the government and the Central Bank. On the other hand violence and corruption, rules. The society is facing many challenges like the enforcement of the rule of law, rape and child incest, corruption, thuggery, attacks on NGOs and promoters of freedom of information, and rising health care costs with people forced to seek private medical care and wait for hours to meet a consultant.
Education is in a mess and AL and OL exams in recent years have had many issues.
This is all about quality and the quality of life which is important and no great statistics will compensate for any ‘disturbances’ in the operation of a smooth society which is a responsibility of the governing party.
What is the purpose of positive GDP growth when young women and children are afraid to get on the streets after sunset; there is still employment while poverty persists? What is the use of ‘rising income levels’ when every week there seems to be some increase in the food items ordinary people buy? How are inflation and COL index figures issued by government agencies showing a downward trend (in whatever method used) when market prices reveal a different story? Many years ago, there were crowds outside a TV store watching the budget presentation on many streets just like see people watching a Sri Lankan cricket match from a TV on a street window.
Last week, photographers from this newspaper went round the city of Colombo looking for similar scenes and came across just a few instances and that too where one or two men were looking through a window.
This picture was published in last week’s Business Times. What does this mean? No one believes budgets any more as the real decisions are made outside, and outside the reach of parliament where the people are supreme; should be supreme or at one time were supposed to be. This is the state of Sri Lanka where credibility in every sphere of governance has been one of the biggest issues to date.