Intellectuals should address views of middle class - Dr. Amunugama

Minister of Public Administration Dr. Sarath Amunugama said that intellectuals should address the views of the middle class in the country and not the crackpots. The growing middle class in the country is rational, responsible and genuine.

In fast growing economies, policy makers consider the view of this middle class, he said. Quoting Indian Finance Minister P. Chidambaram, he said that in India this middle class will grow to 400 million in the next two years.

Minister Amunugama was addressing the book launch of the Sri Lanka Economics Association (SLEA). SLEA launched two books Private-public partnership in economic development: a case for Sri Lanka, edited by Prof.A.D.V. de S. Indraratna and Dr.Athula Ranasinghe and Contemporary economic issues: Sri Lanka in the global context, authored by Dr.Saman Kelegama.

The minister lashed out at politicians, government officials and intellectuals for not moving with new trends in the globe and hanging on to old theories. He pointed out exciting macro and micro decisions taken by India and China adding we will have to rethink what we are doing today.

There are tremendous benefits we can derive from the surge in global and regional growth. Global growth is lead by China and India. At present I feel the so-called intellectuals, decision makers and politicians cannot grasp these opportunities and they are doing great harm to the country, he said.

Amunugama pointed out the slower development in the crucial infrastructure in the country due to these backward attitudes in society. Today there are 20-25 flights per week to India and it will take less time to go to Chennai or Hyderabad than I will take to go to my home town Kandy.

It took 40 years to start the construction of the 20 Km highway. The World Bank, Japan, China and other donors gave money. They all did it but we didn't do it, the Minister said.

Minister Amunugama said that the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB), Petroleum, Railway, Tourist Board and the Transport Board are the five demons that should be restructured. Earlier there were 60 public enterprises and the chairmen of these institutions were at the treasury by the end of every month to get the cheques to pay salaries.

During the last five years the CEB failed to add the generation capacity even to meet the annual 10% growth in electricity demand. Nobody was supposed to grab the mini hydro potential and the CEB rejected it continuously.

All are talking about agriculture but it accounts only for 17% of the GDP. In industries we have ignored the valuable phosphate deposit at Eppawela. We have not carried out a proper geological survey and don't know what is available. We are sitting on the best reserves of gas and oil. None of them is used. There are huge opportunities in our country but they are wasted by parasitic intelligentsia, he said.