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Two Sri Lankan Government spokesmen made remarks that placed the Government in an embarrassing situation last week and had the Government scrambling to ensure damage control.

The first was the Assistant General Manager and Media spokesman for the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) Noel Priyantha who made some rather insensitive remarks in a Television programme  on the consequences of increased CEB tariffs on the studies of students. On being questioned by the TV presenter he claimed that students could do their studies even without electricity with the help of kerosene bottle lamps.

His remarks were made in the context of reports that over a million consumers have had their electricity disconnected due to non payment of electricity dues. 

“Why do you need electricity to study? I had been studying using kerosene oil lamps for about two years. Why do you need to iron clothes when you can wear linen clothing.” he questioned.

While speaking on the lifestyle of the people in the estate sector, Priyantha said that those people live happily as everyone takes alcohol at 2 p.m. However Priyantha himself issued a public apology later expressing ‘deep regret’ if his comments were hurtful to any section of the population.

Responding to a question by Leader of the Opposition Sajith Premadasa in Parliament, Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardene and Power and Energy Minister Kanchana Wijesekera were both critical of the CEB spokeman’s remarks and dubbed them as unprofessional and lacking in empathy. The Minister emphasised that Priyantha’s statement neither reflected the views of the government nor the CEB. Noel Priyantha has since tendered his resignation as the spokesperson of the CEB with immediate effect.

The other ‘spokesperson’ who placed the Government in a spot was Tourism, Lands and Sports Minister Harin Fernando. Although he was not officially appointed as a Government spokesperson, by virtue of being a Cabinet Minister his statements are deemed to reflect the views of the Government and are to be seriously taken note of.

According to media reports Minister Harin Fernando in
his speech in India referred to
Sri Lanka as being part of India giving rise to controversy among political circles.

Chief Government Whip Minister Prasanna Ranatunga was quick to tell Parliament that what Minister Fernando had stated was the latter’s personal opinion and requested that the House await the Minister’s explanation to the House.

The Minister, Harin Fernando himself did make a statement to Parliament subsequently where he tried to make the point that it was the cultural connection with India that he had emphasised in his controversial speech by stating that Sri Lanka was part of India but his explanation did not sound convincing.

It may well be that the Minister got carried away with the recent statement made by Indian Foreign Minister Jaishankar encouraging Indians to make Sri Lanka their next holiday destination. Minister Fernando may have made his controversial remarks buoyed by the Indian Minister’s flattering remarks about Sri Lanka.

In his statement in Parliament the Tourism Minister hit out at opposition MPs Wimal Weerawansa and Udaya Gammanpila over their criticism of his recent speech in India. The Minster charged that the two MPs were once again attempting to create a ruckus based on the misconstrued truth.

According to the Ada Derana website, responding to the allegations against him, Fernando stated that he had only thanked India for extending their support at a time when Sri Lanka was facing its worst economic crisis, and that his statement was gravely misconstrued by the MPs in question.

“I humbly thanked India for saving Sri Lanka for the last 13 – 14 months, with giving us the maximum amount of tourists,” he said.

The Minister further stated that during his speech, he had elaborated on the similarities and connections shared between the two countries, in several aspects including history, language, cinema and food.

“I was explaining that we were both very similar, so Sri Lanka is a part of India”.

“Whenever we are at a bad point, India has always supported us, India always backed us,” the Minister Fernando said, emphasising that India was deemed an ally to Sri Lanka during one of its most crucial times

“But when I ask Indians to come and invest in Sri Lanka, that’s bad. If you ask how countries such as Dubai, Singapore and Malaysia have developed thus far, it is through investments. The ITC hotel that is being built in front of Galle Face is the first Indian hotel that is being built out of India. That’s an investment. How would a country develop without investments?,” the Tourism Minister questioned.

The Minister reiterated that
Sri Lanka remains indebted
to India for its aid, emphasising that inviting India to invest in Sri Lanka and selling the country are two different things.

However the minister seems to have missed the point with regard to the concerns expressed about his speech. No one disputes the fact that the country as a whole is grateful for India’s support during the economic crisis nor that investments from any country, including India are welcome, subject to the overall concerns of Sri Lanka being met. It is his speech that Sri Lanka is part of India that has caused concern among those across the political spectrum.

In the hue and cry raised over Minister Harin Fernando’s
‘Sri Lanka is part of India’ speech, some other disturbing
pronouncements by the Minister have escaped receiving the attention they deserve.

During the Sri Lanka Tourism Networking Evening held recently in Mumbai, the Minister revealed ambitious plans to engage a prominent Indian company to oversee the management of key international airports in the country to cater to the influx of tourists.

The airports slated for management by India’s Adani Group include the Bandaranaike International Airport in Katunayake, the Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport in Hambantota, and the Colombo International Airport in Ratmalana.

“Indian companies are going to take over three of our major airports, which is going to be a phenomenal decision for us,” he said, adding it was necessary to facilitate the growing number of travellers.

Apart from the wisdom of handing over the management of the three entry points to the country to a foreign entity, the question arises whether the proper procedures have been followed and whether other investors too have had the opportunity to participate in the process.

Or has the Adani group been handpicked for the task. How does this sit with the claim made by the Mahinda Rajapakse Government that India was first offered the opportunity to build the Mattala Airport but turned it down.

Another instance of the seeming failure to follow due process is revealed by the Minister in the Government’s attempts to obtain helicopter services for domestic transportation. The Minister said “We spoke with an Indian company to operate a helicopter service
in Sri Lanka to do domestic
transportation. These efforts aim to improve connectivity within Sri Lanka and facilitate seamless travel experiences for tourists and locals alike,” he added.

Here too the helicopter Company seems to have been handpicked without a transparent process. In the haste to revive the economy is the Government abandoning transparent processes which will benefit the country in the long run.

(javidyusuf@gmail.com)