Public scrutiny of state ‘secrets’
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Some years ago, when the Business Times sought information from the Sri Lankan Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE) about MOUs and/or bilateral agreements pertaining to migrant workers between the Government of Sri Lanka and Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait, the point blank response was that these agreements were confidential and cannot be released. This was information that should have been made available to the public as it affected migrant workers.This information was then sought under the Right to Information (RTI) Act and received a similar response. The request was sent to a higher official, under the process of appeal, but the response was the same: “These agreements are confidential and impact on national security.”
Eventually the Business Times filed an appeal with the RTI Commission and after an inquiry, the Commission directed the SLBFE to release the information concluding that this was essential public information and shouldn’t remain a secret.
I was reminded about this when Pedris Appo, short for Appuhamy who is a retired agriculture expert who does farming, called on Thursday morning to discuss the fertiliser crisis and a series of decisions that have left farmers more confused. But first, he had a question: “Why is the government being secretive about the energy agreement with US-based New Fortress Energy?”
“Well, maybe there are some negotiations still going on and the deal is not conclusive,” I said, after the usual welcome on the phone.
“Yes, but the people have a right to know what deals the government is up to as the onus of final responsibility lies with the people since the government is just a trustee of the people,” he said.
“This is the problem with any government; deals are hatched in secret and then they explode in the face of the people,” I noted.
We then discussed the fertiliser controversy with Appo saying that the latest decision to allow chemical fertiliser imports has created confusion amongst farmers. It was also announced that farmers using chemical fertiliser won’t receive a subsidy which is applicable only to farmers using organic fertiliser; further confusion!
Why is the state so secretive about proposed agreements which for all purposes must be disclosed? Is it that the public and media are forced to resort to the RTI to access information? The RTI has been a very helpful tool to the public to access information of government departments and ministries and other state bodies which often use the cover of ‘in the interest of national security’ to withhold information.
There have been numerous occasions where the RTI has been used to access information, sometimes with the RTI Commission stepping in to direct that a particular set of information should be released to the public or the media, upon an appeal, after such information was refused by a state agency.
When the Business Times recently requested details about the debt repayment schedule for the next 12 to 18 months, this was the response from a senior Central Bank official: “… you would agree on the fact that the arrangements of forex inflows now under consideration are required to be maintained with radio silence before releasing for public information.”
What is the secrecy when these arrangements (mostly International Sovereign Bonds) are announced at the time the transactions were done with the repayment time frame given? In the absence of confirmation from the banking regulator, we used figures given by Fitch Rating on the debt payment situation for the next few years.
Meanwhile during a webinar on the ‘Yugadanavi energy debate’ on Tuesday organised by the Sunday Times Business Club, Prof. Anura Wijepala, a former chairman of the Ceylon Electricity Board said that when the framework agreement with New Fortress Energy was signed, it stipulated an amount in US dollars that the government has to pay to secure the LNG from the US company. Then weeks later, when the cabinet approved the agreement, the amount (that the government had to pay) had increased! And, Prof. Wijepala also pointed out that Sri Lanka would have to pay this committed amount (in this flawed agreement) during the wet season when the focus is on more hydro power usage.
This ‘dabbling’ with the numbers reminds us of a similar occurrence about two months ago when the Cabinet granted permission to the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation to seek a loan of US$1 billion from an overseas party to fund fuel purchases, as the country was running out of dollars. When the Cabinet paper was presented to seek approval for the loan from the US New Jersey-based PSL America Inc, permission was granted but the loan had increased to $2.5 billion!
As I pondered over these issues, my attention was drawn to the margosa tree where the trio was deep in conversation. My interest was piqued because they were discussing the fertiliser shortage.
“Den, pohora walatath polim thiyevi, aanduwa theeranayak aran thiyena nisa pohora pita ratin genna denawa kiyala (Now there will also be queues for fertiliser after the government decided to allow imports),” said Kussi Amma Sera.
“Mage nede wena govin kiyanawa egollanta pohora harima avashyai kiyala, den waga kalaya nisa. Kohomada pohora mechchara ikmanin pita ratin genna ganne (My relatives who are farmers say they desperately need fertiliser and the cultivation season has already begun. How can you import fertiliser in such a short time)” asked Mabel Rasthiyadu.
“Samahara welawata plane eken pohora genna ganeewi, ara nano-nitrogen pohora indiayawen gennuwa wage (Maybe they will airlift stocks just like how nano nitrogen fertiliser was imported from India),” noted Serapina.
Coming back to the framework agreement with New Fortress Energy; why was it signed in a hush-hush manner close to midnight, with the US officials then reportedly returning home in the early hours of the morning of October 14? Why the secrecy over an agreement that the public would have to pay for?
As I wound up my column sipping tea brought by Kussi Amma Sera, I was reminded as to whether the secrecy maintained in government deals and contracts has to do with corruption or is it really ‘a state secret’ that cannot be divulged? As proven in the past, the RTI Act has become a blessing in accessing information hidden from public scrutiny.
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