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Compounding the multiple crises in the country today is the confusion within Government ranks and the dissension within the constituent parties of the Government.

At times of national crisis (which is what the country is facing today) any sensible government would seek the assistance of the Opposition and other sections of society to devise policies and strategies that would help overcome the fundamental issues that the country is currently grappling with.

Such a call for cooperation and a helping hand from the Opposition is not a bad reflection on the Government nor is it a sign of weakness. It only means that the nature of the crisis is of such a magnitude that it requires a united and concerted attempt by the whole country to overcome the problem.

Such an approach is a sign of a mature democracy and has been resorted to by many governments in the world when called upon to resolve difficult problems.

However the current Government has since its assumption of office shown an amazing reluctance to heed suggestions from knowledgeable and well meaning sections of society. There are many instances of such an attitude by the Government.

When the COVID-19 pandemic broke out, Lanka Sama Samaja Party leader Dr. Tissa Vitharana whose experience with the World Health Organisation as a virologist for three decades makes him an in house expert on the subject, called for a national committee of all shades of opinion to deal with the situation. The Government not only ignored his salutary suggestion but completely sidelined him from all COVID-19 efforts.

The same applies to the Government-created crisis in the agriculture sector. While the decision to switch from carbonic fertiliser to organic fertiliser was welcomed all round, the attempt to do so overnight was contrary to the view of agricultural experts in the country.

Notwithstanding the advice by some of its own Viyathmaga experts not to do so the Government continued its efforts resulting in a disastrous reduction of productivity in the agriculture sector.

In fact the proposal to switch to organic fertiliser was not something new. Former President Maitripala Sirisena too launched the ‘Wasa Visa” programme with a similar objective during his ternure of office but did not make the same mistake made by this Government and proceeded cautiously in its efforts.

Even the suggestions made by the Opposition are not given adequate attention and are summarily dismissed. Dr. Harsha de Silva and Eran Wickremearatne have been strongly arguing for resorting to multilateral agencies like the IMF to tide over the current crisis. This view has strong support from within Government ranks itself. Even independent economic experts have made the same argument but to no avail.

Independent think tanks like Advocata Institute and Verite Research have offered advice on possible strategies but have had no response at all from the higher echelons of Government.

This attitude of not wanting to share the burden of pulling the country out of the predicament seems to be stemming from a “ know it all attitude” that does not encourage even suggestions from within its own ranks leave alone other stakeholders.

The constituent parties within the government seemed to be absolutely fed up with this approach and have now come together to formulate a plan of their own.

Driven to a sense of helplessness by the Government leadership’s refusal to consult them, the constituent parties of the SLPP-led coalition have planned to unveil an alternative plan on how to overcome the current financial crisis on March 2.

Media reports reveal that among the 11 parties that will be unveiling this plan are the SLFP, the National Freedom Front (NFF) and the Pivithuru Hela Urumaya (PHU).

Such a course of action on the part of the Government constituents is not surprising given the deep dissatisfaction among them. Professor Tissa Vitharana has publicly stated that during the tenure of Mahinda Rajapaksa the constituent parties of the government would meet at least once a month whereas this was not the case now.

Justifying public criticism of the Government by the constituent parties, D. E. W. Gunasekera the veteran Communist Party leader said that they were compelled to do so as they had no internal forum to present their views.

Another instance of the Government not giving ear to its own members was referred to recently by Minister Udaya Gammanpila. Addressing a public meeting in Avissawella recently he said that the country wouldn’t have been in this mess if the Cabinet of Ministers had heeded his advice.

According to him, he had warned on February 15, 2021 that there would be an impending fuel crisis. The Minister said that he subsequently announced the imminent crisis on June 12, 2021. He had done so when SLPP General Secretary and Attorney-at-Law Sagara Kariyawasam criticised him for increasing fuel prices.

Minister Gammanpila also cited another instance of his warnings not being heeded by the Government. He said that he and Trade Minister Bandula Gunawardena had warned the Government Parliamentary group of the precarious situation on July 17, 2021 at a meeting held at the President’s House but were not given the attention they deserved.

All these revelations only point to a cavalier attitude of the Government to what, most independent observers describe, as an unprecedented crisis. What is even more worrying is the fact that Parliament is not provided with an opportunity to exercise its constitutionally mandated power of overseeing the financial management of the country.

Opposition Whip Lakshman Kiriella pointed out last week that Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa had not briefed Parliament since December 10, 2021 on the State of the Economy.

Regular briefings to the country through Parliament will also help the public to know and understand the situation and what steps the Government is taking to deal with the issues faced by the country. This is the least the people can expect from the Government in a functioning democracy (javidyusuf@gmail.com).