Thoughts from London

Those Bs now lodged in the presidential bonnet
Mahinda Chintanaya is the average man's road to a new paradise. Nothing wrong with visions, visionaries and hopes. After all, the average man (there is no such beast, DH Lawrence might add) has been duped so long by politicians of all hues that if he clings to one more, hoping that it would not be another mirage, who could blame him.

But for the man who first thought up this new credo of public good and moral ascendancy merely mouthing pious platitudes will not place him in the pantheon of courageous politicians and venerated statesmen.
The thoughts that moved people to vote for a new leader must ultimately be translated into action if the New Man is to fulfil the hopes and dreams that he held out to the people.

It cannot be done by condoning or ignoring the abuse and misuse of power, by turning a blind eye to turpitude. News reports last week said that President Rajapaksa has called for explanations from one of his ministers -- Rohitha Bogollagama -- for ignoring presidential directives and generally conducting himself in a manner that seemed to suggest he was not bound by the norms of civilised political behaviour.

Bogollagama seems to delude himself into believing that because he moves from one party to another and pledges support to one leader and then the next, he must be treated as an exception to the rules of conduct and accountability that apply to others.If that is the impression under which he functions and believes that he is an untouchable then the sooner he was dissuaded from such thinking the better it will be for the Rajapaksa administration and certainly for this country.

It is not enough that the president has called for explanations concerning his conduct on several matters. All this chinthanaya idealism will not only be quickly dispelled but also another holy script will be written down in the black book of failed political promises along with a litany of public woes.
Rohitha Bogollagama has already embarrassed his previous political leaders. Now he is setting out to embarrass another with his crass conduct that is surely unbecoming of anybody holding public office and accountable to the people of this country.

In case readers have somehow missed the Bogollagama drama that moves from one act to the next like the unfolding of a Shakesperean play with a comic subplot, let us recall a few incidents in the life of the Minister for Enterprise Development and Investment Promotion or some such high sounding portfolio that Bogollagama finds as useful as an airline season ticket.

Of course there is no such thing. But in the days when our local Communist Party hierarchy joined other high flyers on Aeroflot and so very often sought medical treatment and political advice in Moscow, some of us wondered whether top ranking comrades had been issued with season tickets on the Soviet carrier.

Anyway when Bogollagama went to New Delhi and was a member of the delegation that accompanied President Rajapaksa on his first visit abroad since assuming office, they were all guests of the Indian Government. But for Boggy, if one might use an abbreviation to describe the deviationist, Indian Government accommodation did not seem lordly enough given his station as the man who is responsible for bringing big bucks into our country.

Instead of bringing big bucks in he seems to have taken them out by staying at an expensive hotel where he would normally have had to spend the tax payers’ money instead of his own. Mind you he was not alone either. And to accommodate his wife and family only a presidential suite at an expensive New Delhi hotel would do too.

While Boggy's New Delhi sojourn was already in the public domain through the media, off he goes to Geneva as a member of the government delegation to the talks with the LTTE.

While other members of that delegation faithfully went to Geneva and to the Chateau de Bossey where they were to be accommodated by the Swiss Government, Bogollagama went ahead and landed in London.
Now if Boggy's geography is rather wonky, there is something called an atlas which he could have looked at. If he did not know how to use it, he could have always asked his dear wife or his son who is said to be an aspiring politician, to consult the blessed book.

Having inadvertently or otherwise arrived in London did he and his kith and kin stay at some respectable but inexpensive digs or a modest hotel?
Well I'm not taking any wagers on this one but if anybody wishes to know how much the bill was they might apply to the Sri Lanka High Commission in London which must have been in quite a dither about who is going to cough up the moola to pay the hotel.When I.M.R.A. Iriyagolle was education minister in the Dudley Senanayake government he attended a UNESCO conference in Bangkok. But he sought to reach the Thai capital via London and the United States.

This gave rise to the saying well known at the time- Iriyagolle Bangkok giya wagey. Before long we might well hear a ditty or two about Bogollagama's circuitous flying and expensive life style- Bogollaya Geneva giya hati.

Having tasted luxury at the expense of somebody else Boggy and family had then to fly back because as any primary school student would know, London is beyond Geneva as one flies from Colombo.

Now a new act in this absorbing piece of theatrical farce was played out in Geneva. Instead of staying in the accommodation provided by the Swiss as other members of the government delegation did, Boggy and family sought refuge at the Geneva Hilton.Well, Mahinda Rajapaksa made him Enterprise Development Minister and bless his dear heart, Bogollagama is taking his job seriously. There is one slight flaw, however. He is developing family enterprises rather than any that has substantially contributed to the national economy.

Not only did Bogollagama prefer the Hilton to the chateau, he had even brought his son to the confidential discussions the government members were having among themselves.

His explanation for such unprecedented and unacceptable conduct? His son has political ambitions and this is part of his training. Has anybody heard such arrant nonsense. Why, the next time Boggy might turn up with the blighter for the cabinet meeting. But let's not forget the bright side to this. The chappie is sure not taking any political lessons from his father.
We have heard enough of our political progeny, breaking up public places, assaulting police and public alike, wielding weapons and generally behaving like spoilt brats with other people's money in their pockets and nothing in their heads.

Now they want to dump another son on an unsuspecting public. If Mahinda Rajapaksa does not want his chintanaya to be another useless piece of paper he better start changing the political culture and make his people behave like decent human beings accountable to the people.
If he does not have the courage to ditch even those closest to him, his chintanaya will be a mere footnote in our history.

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