by VICTOR IVAN
What is being heard everywhere is for people to go home; never was heard a voice beckoning someone to take control and steer the country out of the morass
The Parliamentary Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) now meets daily and its fact-finding discussions give an idea about the extent of ?? corruption, inefficiency and the ugly nature associated with the activities of the Sri Lankan State and its institutional system. According to the facts being revealed before COPE, the factors contributing to the failure and bankruptcy of the country have originated not only after the emergence of the rule of Gotabaya, but long before that.
Also, it is evident that not only the actions of the politicians but also that of the government officials as well, has led to the failure of the country. The Parliament, which is responsible for overseeing the State and its institutions, should have looked into this matter not now but long before the country went bankrupt. It was too late when the Parliament realised the gravity of the situation.
Sri Lanka at this critical juncture is in a terrible abyss that is not easy to recover from. The country is now in a pathetic state of bankruptcy, failure and collapse on a large scale. Already the fuel shortage has severely disrupted traffic and transportation. The productivity of the manufacturing sector is also deteriorating. The shortage of drugs has led to large-scale decline in the efficiency of hospitals. The life expectancy of chronic patients is insecure. The number of those who have lost jobs is also high and living has become unbearable in the face of ever-increasing inflation.
The catastrophic collapse in agriculture caused by the ban on chemical fertilisers has not yet been able to be reversed and there may be a serious risk of food shortage by October this year. It was too late when the IMF was approached for its assistance and advice for resolving the balance of payments crisis. Consequently, resolving the balance of payments crisis has led to creating a very difficult situation and an extraordinarily unusual level of suffering.
From darkness to darkness
Sri Lanka does not seem to possess the ability to properly manage the crisis it is facing and in a manner capable of overcoming it. At least, it has not been able to distribute the scant supply of petrol procured with much difficulty in an effective manner. Despite the fact that the purchasing power of petrol and diesel has become extremely limited, Sri Lanka is still trying to follow a policy of providing petrol and diesel for all vehicles.
Similarly, in all other areas, things are taking place in a chaotic and ridiculous manner. There is not even a slightest trace of a silver lining visible except the thick darkness looming large over the horizon. All of them, the ruling party including the President, the Prime Minister and the Cabinet of Ministers and the Opposition, appear to be involved in a narrow power struggle; and they do not seem to be engaged in a significant task to overcome the general catastrophe the country is facing, compared to the magnitude of the issue. For some reason, neither the political regime nor the society in general seems to have a strong interest in overcoming this crisis. Evidently there a big mess and confusion in the way of thinking of all parties viz the Government, the Opposition, the youth involved in ‘Aragalaya’ (struggle) and the alternative political groups.
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