When it comes to challenging State bureaucracy: President Rajapaksa appears to follow PM Modi with a pinch of military touch to it
Posted on May 16th, 2020

Gagani Weerakoon Courtesy Ceylon Today

The all- powerful Indian Administrative Service (IAS), over decades has been considered as the steel frame of government and governance in India. A Sri Lankan High Commissioner, who served in New Delhi somewhere in the last five years, in an attempt to familiarise Indian bureaucracy to a group of Sri Lankans once said; “You may have met several joint secretaries during your stay here. 

Even though they are referred to as ‘joint’ Secretaries, they actually are ‘giant’ secretaries. It’s not the ministers or politicians that call the cards here, it is ‘them’. So I call them giant secretaries.”

This has been the common belief and may have remained same at least until the second term of Prime Minister Naredra Modi’s BJP Government regained power.

The BJP in its 2019 election manifesto stated: “To transform India into a developed nation, we need to work with the guiding principle of ‘minimum government and maximum governance’ and we will bring reform in the civil services and implement it in a manner to achieve.”

Mentioned in their 2019 election manifesto about the need of bringing reforms to the IAS, Prime Minister Modi’s Government actually started shaking and stirring the 70- year old Indian Administrative Service in the latter part of 2019. By January 2020, it began the controversial 360 degree appraisal format, the abrupt, unexplained and frequent transfers of officers from one ministry to another, the introduction of biometric attendance in government offices. Basically, PM Modi, unlike any other predecessor, dared giving a makeover to an institution that exerts more power than most civil services anywhere in the world.

Main reason for this major shake-up, as views expressed by experts and was published in Indian Media at the time, was that the efforts of the government do not seem to percolate down towards its intended recipients.
While, the Administrative Service in India was undergoing reforms, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa too appeared to have lost his cool during a meeting with a group of bureaucrats.

While insisting that irrational laws should not obstruct the policies formulated to achieve the economic objectives of the people, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa told State officials to either fall in line with his policies or step down.

During a meeting held on 14 May, with officials and Ministry Secretaries attached to the plantation industry sector, at the Presidential Secretariat, the President said that when the Government takes forward a policy, all State institutions and Departments must ensure that the said policy is implemented The meeting was called to find solutions to a number of issues rooted in the plantation industry “State institutions should be maintained without burdening the Treasury. 

It should not take long to present these strategies. Mutual understanding among State institutions and proper awareness about State policies will ensure that there would not be any conflicts among institutions. When a Government makes the right decision with regard to a State policy, all State institutions should comply. 

There should be no room to withhold carrying out the right thing. A State official who could not execute the right thing is a burden to this nation. A State official is an individual who resolves issues and not neglects them,” President Rajapaksa stressed.

He also said that he is doing things the right way and that if the right policies cannot be implemented there is no point in having public sector officials.

“You know what my policies are. You will either need to act accordingly or voice your protest and leave. That is what I have to say. I don’t care if it is a secretary or a head of department,” he added.

The President noted that a decision was taken to cease the importation of ethanol which had been traumatizing the economy for a long time and he added that he would not withdraw his decision due to any influence from businessmen.

It was revealed during the meeting that State institutions had to resort to legal action as affiliated institutions had not properly discussed their issues with each other. It came to light that the Land Reforms Commission has filed over 800 cases and that 300 of them were against the Plantations Corporation.

On Monday (11), seven Secretaries were appointed, with immediate effect, to Ministries, including Health, Public Administration, Tourism and Justice.

Accordingly, (Ms.) S.M. Mohamed has been appointed as the Secretary to the Ministry of Justice, Human Rights and Law Reforms; J.J. Ratnasiri as the Secretary to the Ministry of Public Administration, Home Affairs, Provincial Councils and Local Government; Former Secretary of Public Administration, S. Hettiarachchi as the Secretary to the Ministry of Tourism and Aviation; H.K.D.W.M.N.B. Hapuhinna as the Secretary to the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs, and Social Security; and (Ms.) J.M.B. Jayawardena as the Secretary to the Ministry of Internal Trade, Food Safety and Consumer Welfare.  

Two Majors  General also were appointed as Secretaries to two Ministries. This includes Retired Major General A.K.S. Perera as the Secretary to the Ministry of Mahaweli, Agriculture, Irrigation and Rural Development, and Major General Sanjeewa Munasinghe as the Secretary to the Ministry of Health and Indigenous Medical Services.

Minister of Health Pavithra Wanniarachchi, Director General of Health Service Dr. Anil Jasinghe and Former Secretary to the Ministry Bhadrani Jayawardene were present when Major General Munasinghe assumed duties.
Ever since his induction to office, President Rajapaksa came under severe criticism by his opponents and was accused of attempting to bring the country under gradual and indirect militarization.

However, upon being questioned about these concerns earlier in March this year, he defended the appointment of ex-military officers to top posts in State institutions.

Speaking to heads of print and electronic media, President Rajapaksa said that high ranking military personnel are trained both locally and internationally in a number of fields including administration.

He said that even the former Government had appointed military officers to head State institutions; in fact more than what he has done in numbers. Yet, nobody seems to have even taken a note on that, he said.

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