Aim at veering the Govt in right direction :

HONOUR ELECTION PROMISES - Prof Wijesooriya

by Manjula Fernando

The Civil society of the country was one of the major forces which contributed to the victory of the current government. Different factions of citizens’ movements rallied behind the common campaign to bring a government based on good governance to power in Sri Lanka. One and a half years later, the same factions of civil society launched into action yet again, this time to ensure the government makes good on election promises.

The campaign launched by the Movement for a Just Society and Citizen’s Collective is aimed at reviving the probes on major corruption cases and demand the government to fulfil the good governance pledges given to the people on January 8.

The Convenor of Movement for a Just Society Prof.Sarath Wijesooriya in an interview with the Sunday Observer said their attempt is not to topple the government but rather to protect it by getting the Government to punish corrupt officials and Ministers. “We do not regret defeating the Mahinda Rajapaksa government” he says, calling it a historic duty that the civil society fulfilled. However, he is critical of the performance of the government, and aims to “veer them to the correct path.”

Q: Is the National Movement for Just Society falling out with the good governance government? Is there any reason ?

A: The main reason is the failure to fulfil the promises in the Yahapalana manifesto by the common candidate. The failure to honour the pledges given to the people, pledges to be fulfilled after January 8. We patiently waited for the government to take to task the corrupt individuals of the previous regime. It is not happenning. Some investigations have been completed and submitted to the Attorney General’s Department, but we have come to know that these cases have been shelved due to political interference. There is proof to this effect. We decided that, as a civil society group we must take some action.

Q: What are the investigations you are referring to ?

A: We know investigations on over 40 cases of corruption have been completed by the FCID and the CID. It is not proper to reveal what these are, at this point. Further, ongoing investigations have also been stopped due to political interference. That is very serious. We understand there can be problematic areas when implementing laws, but it is outrageous to stop investigations altogether, on particular cases, to protect certain people. Such cases involve UPFA MPs who crossed over, and politicians who crept through the national list to be part of the consensual government. These corrupt Ministers and state officials must be punished irrespective of their positions.

Q: Do you have any specific examples of acts of corruption committed by this government? What can be done to mitigate deep rooted corruption in Sri Lanka’s institutions?

A: Our officials have cracked even the most difficult cases such as, Thajudeen’s and Ekneligoda’s murders, but we wonder why some of the simple cases get lukewarm attention. It indicates that there are Ministers with a tendency for corruption. We have identified five Ministers with major charges of corruption. During an expose one Minister had to resign. Another is trying to appoint corrupt officials to his Ministry. We need to strengthen the Attorney General’s Department, Judicial Services Commission, and the Judiciary, among other institutions, so that these entities can perform with dignity. There needs to be substantial treasury allocations to upgrade these institutions.

Q: Do you think the government is beyond redemption ?

A: We do not regret defeating the Mahinda Rajapaksa government. It was a historic duty and we succeeded. But we are dissatisfied with the performance of this government so far, our effort currently, is to get them to the correct path. We were the major force behind their historic win, hence we believe the government will listen to us.

Q: Have you any plans to topple the good governance government?

A: No, we don’t have such a plan. A government can ignore calls by the civil society. It can choose to be unbending. Such governments will not last long. That is the reality. We cannot cause a government to topple, our actions will be in keeping with democratic norms. But we can give leadership to the next civil society movement to bring in a change at the right moment.

Q: What do you mean by the right moment ?

A: In four years there will be two crucial elections, the Presidential and the parliamentary elections. Today, the youth are highly informed. Politicians cannot take them for a ride.

Q: But there is no alternative political force in the country ?

A: That was the conviction during the reigns of Mahinda Rajapaksa, J.R.Jayawardena and R.Premadasa. But, a leader will rise to the occasion. People have chosen the right person at the right time. History has shown many such examples. Such lessons learnt must not be disregarded.

Q: Civil society groups met the Prime Minister on Friday to discuss the re-appointment of the Central Bank Governor Arjun Mahendran. Didn’t you get a satisfactory response at this meeting? What was the need to call a special meeting at the Public Library last Friday?

A: The conference was pre-planned. The invitation to meet government leaders came afterwards. We believe it was the outcome of our efforts to get their attention. The topics discussed at the meeting covered a wide range of issues, not just the re-appointment of the Central Bank Governor Arjun Mahendran. We submitted grounds why he should not be re-appointed. We got the Prime Minister to come to an agreement in the presence of the President. But, it will not be the end of the case. We called upon the PM to initiate a transparent and proper investigation on the Governor as well as the Bond issue.

Q: Do you see President Mahinda Rajapaksa regaining popularity, as doubts of the current government grow?

A: We don’t believe he is gaining popularity. There is a decline in his support base. On the other hand, there is a funded campaign to boost their image. This campaign is trying to instil in the minds of the general masses that the former regime was better than the present government. It is a multi- million campaign. I personally don’t believe that people will give another mandate to Mahinda Rajapaksa. Despite the war victory, the people voted him out. He never made any concrete steps to reconcile the warring communities. But, I would not say this government is perfect. They are committing a lot of wrongs, but we haven’t come to a stage where we can say, the former government is better than the current one. Can the media ask the questions they fearlessly ask today?

Q: Do you believe that a government has to take unpopular decisions because it might be beneficial in the long run ?

A: We were patient when the government gave nationalist slots in parliament to politicians rejected by the people, in order to create a stable government. We thought such actions were paramount to facilitate important political reforms. But, that patience has been given false interpretations. The best example is inviting Dayan Jayatilleke to advise the President on Foreign policy. He was the Chief advisor of the Rajapaksa regime. At a recent event he lashed out at the PM and the Foreign Minister while glorifying the President. There can’t be two foreign policies within a government. We suspect these actions would block the political reforms that we urgently seek.

Q: There is an allegation that this government is a puppet of the West. They suspect the gestures of extreme cordiality from super powers are a ruse to control the state?

A: It was a theory given wings even before the government was elected. The basis for that argument is racism. They are trying to give life to the old boogeyman – “international conspiracies”. This is not at all a situation that needs to be feared. Our fight is to win back to the people of this country the freedom to live without fear or suppression.

Q: Coming back to the National Movement for Just Society, there is an allegation that this movement under your leadership is gradually moving away from the noble principles set forth under Ven.Maduluwawe Sobhitha thera. Your comments ?

A: It is a completely false notion. Before Ven Sobhitha thera passed away, we came up with a set of ten proposals. It was submitted to the President and Prime Minister at the BMICH. Both pledged to implement the proposals. We will stand by these proposals. We don’t have any other agenda.

Q: Why is Ven.Rathana thera, who was at the helm of the rainbow revolution alongside Ven.Sobhitha thera, silent today?

A: Ven.Rathana thera is not part of the National Movement for Just Society, he was the leader of the Pivithuru Hetak movement. Many groups worked with Ven.Sobhitha thera during our campaign to elect the common candidate, we all worked together during the decisive Presidential election but he is not part of us.

Q: What are your future plans ?

A: We set in motion a public awareness campaign on Friday. The inauguration was held at the Public Library. Such programs will be conducted in every district. We have two objectives, one is to get the attention of state leaders towards the civil society, the second is to get the civil societies to rally round us and compel the government through democratic means to fulfil the election pledges. We don’t have the ability to topple the government nor do we want to do that. We elected this government, we want to protect it.