Parliament

Budget fire clouded by political crisis
By Chandani Kirinde, Our Lobby Correspondent
The government's so called "sunshine budget" was passed by a comfortable majority in Parliament on Thursday although discussions of its merits and demerits were overshadowed by the political uncertainty in the country. The government secured 126 votes along with the support of the TNA members present while 88 PA and JVP members voted against it.

Despite the much publicised attempts being made to reach some form of national reconciliation between the UNF and the PA, legislators on the two sides demonstrated the sharp differences that exist between them during the six day long debate on the second reading of the Appropriation bill.

Several top government ministers spoke during the last day of the debate. Leader of the House W.J.M.Lokubandara did not mince his words when he accused the President of trying to sabotage the budget by taking control over three ministries and proroguing Parliament when the economy was taking a turn for the better and the people were about to reap its benefits.

"Why didn't she do something similar before last years budget and do so now? It's because she knew we had turned the economy around and were about to give the benefits to the people. She wanted to stop this," he charged.

Mr.Lokubanadara also chided the PA and JVP parliamentarians for not opposing the President when she prorogued Parliament when the most important Bill of the year, the Appropriation Bill, was about to be taken up for debate.

"Vehicles have speed limits but that does not mean you go at the maximum speed possible. You adjust the speed according to the terrain. It's the same with the executive presidency. It has many powers but that does not mean you use all of them," he said.

However many in the Opposition were amused at the number of senior members in the present government who supported the 1978 constitution now having to swallow the bitter pill with the Constitution going against them.

Foreign Affairs Minister Tyronne Fernando said the government needed to find a way to work with the President. "She is the executive President under the Constitution, of which we are the father, " Mr.Fernando said.

There were more critics of the Constitution. Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena, PA Matara district MP blamed it for the political quagmire the country has been placed in and asked the government to initiate means of changing it. "You will have my vote to change this Constitution. It was approved in an undemocratic manner," Mr.Yapa, a one time UNPer said. He also tabled in the House the undated letter of resignation that all UNP MPs had to hand over to the then UNP leadership. "I safeguarded this letter for many years thinking that one day I can table it in the House so that future generations can see how democracy was violated," he said.

SLMC leader Rauff Hakeem spoke at length on the political stalemate between the government and the President and offered several suggestions for the two sides to work together. "Our party is uniquely privileged in claiming a fair share of the popular mandate of President Kumaratunga as well as that of the UNF government," Mr.Hakeem said adding that the SLMC had campaigned for the President in the December 1999 Presidential election while supporting the UNP at the December 2001 polls.

Mr. Hakeem added that despite the obvious political divergence between the President and Prime Minister, it is clear that both of them are on the same wavelength at least in so far as their commitment to the peace process is concerned. The SLMC leader who left for India on Thursday for discussion on the role of the Muslims in the peace process also stressed the need for India to play a greater and more active role in finding a resolution to the ethnic issue.

Opposition leader Mahinda Rajapakse too endorsed Mr.Hakeem's view when he wound up the budget debate on behalf of the opposition. " I want to reiterate what I have said earlier about making India a partner in this peace process. I want to tell this government that it is important for India to be a mediator in this," he said. Mr. Rajapakse also accused the government of raising the hopes of the people in the lead up to the budget and then leaving them disappointed.

Even though the TNA voted for the Budget, most of its members expressed disappointment that it had failed to address the economic needs of the people of the north and east. "In the entire Budget, we only have one paragraph dedicated specifically to the northeast, and it states that eight million rupees have been allocated towards the northeast rehabilitation programme, which is spread over three years.

The amount allocated in the budget to districts outside the northeast for normal maintenance work is more than the amount allocated to the northeast," Jaffna district Parliamentarian Gajendra Ponnambalam said. Finance Minister K.N.Choksy said he would discuss with TNA MPs on more allocation of funds for development in the northeast. There was some good news with the Minister promising to reconsider the imposition of the VAT on electricity, water and LP gas.

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