By Sena Thoradeniya

Sri Lanka is still reeling from the blows of economic meltdown and bowing down to continuous pressures from Western capitals, this time from Canada as well and India. Hopelessness for the future rather than an abstract theoretical construct has become ingrained in the minds of people as an irrefutable fact. Men and women who carry the label of intellectual” are still not satited with their absurd predictions and engage themselves in a never-ending game.

Continuity or Change? This question has been prominent among historians. This is a very simple question. Continuity and change are two opposite ends of a continuum. Change weakens continuity and vice versa.

To what extent what we experience after RW becoming the President of Sri Lanka as a result of many disruptive events, represent a departure from that which existed before?  Do we experience a continuation of previous circumstances?  Answer is also simple. Instead of change we witness continuity. Media reports confirm that continuity has taken roots everywhere and in every sphere of influence.

We begin with Julie Chung, the American Ambassador. In the month of July, she  continued to meet groups of civil society” men and women, politicians, this time (1) Sampanthan of TNA ( discussed ‘issues facing Tamils and other minority communities in Sri Lanka” (who appointed Sampanthan to speak on other minority communities?), about the way forward”, questions around national identity, reforms and the community’s demands for accountability and justice”) (2) other Tamil politicians including Abraham Sumanthiran, Vigneshvaran, Siddharthan and two others, ahead of RW’s visit to India (discussed importance of devolution, land returns and finding answers for families of missing persons including investigations into mass graves as Sri Lanka still strives for truth, reconciliation and lasting peace”, as Head of Sri Lankan State and Government. Very soon she will stir a hornet’s nest regarding recently excavated mass graves with her BASL and OMP buddies.) (3) Sri Lankan women parliamentary caucus before their upcoming study tour to New Zealand funded by USAID (among them were Thalatha, Sudharshani, Geetha and Pavithradevi), Secretary General of Parliament to congratulate her (does Chung congratulates all other appointees?), Sri Lankan students heading to US on scholarship (first lesson in brainwashing), mobile journalists ( to showcase of the power of mobile journalism in Sri Lanka” : Chung knows well the role played by US trained mobile journalists in the ouster of GR) and issue a barrage of twitter messages. She joined the commemoration of the 56^th anniversary of Sri Lanka’s Navy and Maritime Academy and visited the Diving Unit at the Naval Dockyard, Trincomalee and Malima Diving Club. As the Commander-in-Chief of the Sri Lankan armed forces she met instructors, cadets and midshipmen and discussed the importance of Sri Lanka’s maritime operations and bilateral security cooperation”. She met and congratulated the new Chairman of Ceylon Chamber of Commerce.  She congratulated Sri Lanka Coast Guard Service members on completion of maritime law enforcement skills training” with US Coast Guard at Mirissa.

Opposition parliamentarians still relish on writing to Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) and Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) seeking their intervention to prevent Speaker from conducting parliamentary proceedings in a manner politically beneficial for government”.

The Speaker has appointed a Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) to investigate the crisis and probe into country’s bankruptcy, reminding past Select Committees (probing bond scam, Easter Sunday carnage etc.).  It is well known that the present crisis is not of recent origin and all of the ruling parties were responsible for the crisis. It started with JRJ’s heavy borrowings and neo-liberal policies, CBK blindly following neo-liberal policies hoodwinking the masses that her regime had a human face” and disastrous policies of Yahapalana government of Sirisena and Wickremasinghe.

One Pohottuwa dissident declared that he would lead a thorough inquiry into economic crisis. Where were they when the government implemented a massive tax cut, reducing sugar tax to 25 cents and interest rates, stopping import of chemical fertilizer and agrochemicals and taking other disastrous moves? Not to be outdone by others leader of the opposition vowed that he would finalise his investigation on finding reasons for bankruptcy of the country and who were responsible for it within three months.  

Bringing no-confidence motions against ministers is also part of this game of deceiving masses. For the present crisis in the health sector only the Health Minister was made the scapegoat. Nobody criticises RW for these wrongdoings. 

Attempt to reconvene the dissolved local government bodies through a private member’s motion reminds the attempt made by the UNP to reconvene the dissolved Parliament during Covid-19 pandemic. It was yahapalana government which postponed Provincial Councils Elections in 2017; all including UNP (including breakaway SJB), SLFP, JVP and TNA supported the postponement. UNP in 1982 instead of holding a General Election, rolling the electoral map”, held a referendum which was heavily rigged.

Canadian High Commissioner and the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka who is perceived at least by his constituency as a national – minded politician, inaugurated a symposium to encourage the implementation of the official language policy, that Tamil shall be the language of administration and courts in the North and East.

TNA politicians bring hordes of rabble rousers to perform Hindu rites at the Buddhist Kurundee Vihare at Mullaitivu in the wake of government releasing state land around the Viharaya and removing its boundary stones.

Meeting Tamil party leaders which coincided with RW’s visit to India and Chung’s meeting with Tamil politicians, RW showed his willingness to full enforcement of 13 th Amendment if the Parliament agrees to do so. Stressing that he was Ranil Wickremasinghe, not Ranil Rajapaksa was a stern warning to the Pohottuwa MPs. True nature of Ranil Wickremasinghe is displayed day in and day out. He cannot free himself from his legacy which he was carrying from 1977. Time has come to implement all the treacherous deeds what he could not fulfill being the Prime Minister on several occasions under powerful executive Presidents.

RW addressing the Colombo-based Indian CEO Forum said that Indian currency would soon be accepted within Sri Lanka and it is expected to boost trade and tourism. It was said that designating Indian Rupee (INR) in foreign currency system in Sri Lanka will enable trade settlements between the two countries in INR and Indian tourists visiting Sri Lanka can use INR for their transactions. This will bring disastrous consequences, tying Sri Lanka’s economy to India. What guarantee the government has that Indian tourists will bring here Indian Rupees as there are many avenues to procure Indian Rupees locally through Indian agents? This will aggravate the dollar crunch as it was reported that at present majority of tourists arrive from India.

Meeting the Indian Prime Minister Modi in the Indian capital a few days ago, RW was lured by Modi’s Neighborhood First Policy” and SAGAR” (Security and Growth for All in the Region) Vision to take Sri Lanka into India’s orbit. RW’s MOUs and declarations exchanged with the Indian government during his recent visit to India, (1) high capacity power grid connectivity between the two countries to enable bidirectional electricity trade between Sri Lanka and India (proponents of Accelerated Mahaveli Scheme under RW’s uncle JRJ, said their aim was to export electricity to Southern India!) (2) increasing air connectivity between Chennai and Jaffna, Trinco, Batticaloa and other destinations in Sri Lanka (3) petroleum distribution pipeline connecting southern part of India and Colombo and Trincomalee (4) land  connectivity between Sri Lanka and India (land bridge) for developing land access to ports of Colombo and Trincomalee (5) maritime connectivity (already operating cruise liner, a normal ferry service to begin between KKS and Nagapattinum and resumption of ferry service between Talaimannar and Rameswaram  (6) development of Trincomalee as a national and regional hub (7) designating INR as a currency for trade settlement and tourism  (8) popularising Ramayana Trail”  will be the stepping stones in making Sri Lanka the newest State of India.

A dissident Phottuwa MP, who was very close to GR, handpicked by him for high office, now in the Helicopter” party telephoned the writer and said that he had opposed GR’s move switching over to organic manure, he had never said that Chronic Kidney Disease of Unknown Etiology (CKD) was caused by excess usage of chemical fertilizer and he was never a Viyathmaga member. What is important is not that. He said that he, along with his Ministerial colleagues had vehemently criticised the way GR carried out Covid vaccination programme and GR was not of sound mind – in other words mad – after his bypass operation. His medical opinion was some chemical goes to the brain from heart and makes a person insane. I consulted some medics regarding this but it is better to stop here without making this discourse a lesson by a clinician. It should be left to medical experts.

Does this vilification need any comment from us?  Now there are no people left to take responsibility to mismanagement, bungling of affairs and ill-conceived decisions taken.

Experts” wash their hands saying that they have not advised GR to cancel the Light Rail Transit (LRT) project.

A political analyst revealed recently that there is news in the grapevine that SOFA will be signed soon. RW has appointed a committee that has endorsed signing of it, including articles previously considered controversial.  Our academics will say that they have not advised GR not to sign SOFA. In such a situation the Pohottuwa MPs will hide their faces like ostriches; no opposition MP will dare to present a no-confidence motion in the Parliament against this.

Pandu karanda (Crudia Zeylanica) tree that stood in the way of Central Highway tested GR’s mettle signifying what was in store for him in facing unforeseen events. In 2021, print and electronic media made a local level junior officer a heroine who wove a story that it was the only tree of its kind remaining in the Island. Some Buddhist monks chanting pirith performed an un-Buddhistic drama by ordaining it (as a Buddhist monk) draping it with a saffron robe.  Environmentalists, media, Buddhist monks and opposition politicians surrounded it opposing its removal. GR had to divert the expressway incurring heavy expenses. In hindsight we conclude that this was a part of the grand conspiracy hatched by interested parties against GR. Nobody understood the warning signals.

Sudden disappearance of it in the first week of July 2023, gave a stern warning to environmentalists and those who opposed not only the removal of it but also RW’s moves. Bandula Gunawardena who served as a Cabinet Minister under GR fully acceded to the decision to change the route of the Highway incurring a cost of Rupees 15 billion more was the man who was responsible for removing the tree this time as a cabinet Minister under RW.

Removing a tree that stood obstructing a planned highway was only a trial run. A week later the Chairman of Sri Lanka Telecom (SLT) was expelled; two directors representing the government had voted to support his expulsion. It is said that the ousted Chairman opposed privatisation of Telecom.