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Remember the past and correct the future
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Any political party, when it comes to office, will talk about putting the country in order. It will spell out various policies for this. But we are yet to see a party getting about this task properly. If we are to put the country in order, we will have to put the people in order first. Without doing this we cannot put the country in order. It is good to recall the recent discussions we had on this. We must pay attention to what the President, the Prime Minister, the Finance Minister and other ministers said after they assumed dutiesWe must remember that the new Government did not take over a bankrupt country. About 500,000 vehicles were being registered every year and this indicated that there was money in the hands of the lower middle class, the middle class and the rich. Foreign investors know that our salaries, in comparison to other developing countries, are high. That is why they go elsewhere seeking cheap labour. Even Sri Lankan investors are seeking opportunities outside. We also know of some businessmen who prefer to go to countries like Dubai though the labour is costlier there.
What is the issue here? Is it the salary? Or the use of labour resources properly, the cost of living, desire for luxury living, or mere laziness? We should find an answer to this question. In our country, education and health services are free. Common amenities and expenses for development are provided by the Government. Who foots the bill? Are those who come to power responsible for this? Or are we responsible for this? I am asking this question from everyone. Desperate situations call for desperate measures. We need to find answers to suit the modern day.
We heard about the new President reducing the unnecessary expenditure of his office by Rs. 300 million. We heard that this happened in certain other ministries too. Even if this is true, the problem is not the wastage. As long as there is water in the well we can draw from it. We have forgotten that water to our economic well flows mainly from debt.
Dr. N.M. Perera was the MP for Yatiyantota. I joined the campaign with Ven. Medagoda Dhammajothi Thera to defeat him in 1977. I did this because Dr. Perera was one of the key figures in the nationalization of Lake House and this curtailed media freedom. But I was in favour of his economic policies. He took drastic measures to take the country completely out of the clutches of foreign debt. He turned the country upside down, imposed drastic taxes and nationalised ventures. But I still regret about some of his nationalised ventures.
Sirima Bandaranaike who blamed the Communists and the LSSPers for her husband’s death, brought them into her government. The SLFP had its ups and downs in the past. It is the case even with the UNP. Now the SLFP and the UNP have come together. Let this unity be for the good of the country and not for its downfall. That is my earnest wish.
Ms. Bandaranaike forgot the harm done to her and her husband by a few and worked with wisdom. Some of her followers are still in government. Followers of Bandaranaike and Jayewardene must rise to the occasion and recall the good they did at the time and perform now. In addition, it is good if they can carry forward the good things done by President Mahinda Rajapaksa too. My wish is that President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe together with former President Rajapaksa, who was with them in good times and bad, would work out a plan with the blessings of the people. I feel that everyone must cooperate to develop the country by putting aside political differences and personal grudges, at least temporarily. To develop the country, we must first educate the public. Politicians must be honest and do their duty by the country. We have heard about the story of the crab and how it walks. Similarly, we must lead the public in the correct way.
We have too many public holidays. Yet, there is a tendency to keep off from work on Fridays and Mondays. This culture has to change. Poya holidays and other public holidays add to the problem. This has given rise to a malady affecting both the public and private sectors.
Shan Wickremesinghe, the elder brother of Prime Minister Wickremesinghe, started a TV station in Sri Lanka first. He started the ITN with great effort but with the least expenditure. But President J.R. Jayewardene, based on a malicious person’s false story, nationalised the TV station. He and Shan Wickremesinghe were the grandson and the great grandson of that great lady Helena Wijewardene. Disregarding the relationship, he went ahead with the nationalisation of ITN. It was the same Jayewardene and the UNP which rose against the takeover of Lake House by the Sirima Bandaranaike regime. But when in power, Jayewardene forgot about how he opposed the takeover.
If we are keen on turning the yahapalanaya or good governance into something more meaningful, we must change our idea of a free media. This way we can make a big difference to our budget deficit, too. The Government cannot achieve anything this way. Many nationalised ventures were handed over to the private sector as they were not profitable. I feel the time has come to rethink the concept of state-owned media.
It is useless talking about the country’s development until such time the people are ready to dedicate themselves to duty. The Government must immediately introduce a code of conduct for workers in both the public and the private sectors to work in a pleasant atmosphere with correct mental freedom. This is what is expected by the people and will greatly help good governance. I feel that this can be done with the help of both the state-run and private media groups.
What I have outlined above should be summarised and a leaflet be prepared for distribution citing briefly the needs of each village and each segment of society. The radio and TV channels should discuss these matters at least in the next two months for the benefit of the people. Please write to me giving your ideas for the betterment of the country. The address is Gangaramaya, Sri Jinarathana Road, Colombo 02.