The much talked of 100
days of the ‘100 Days Program’ that was part of President Maithripala
Sirisena’s election campaign is now completed. The President himself has
come out with a statement which can be read as 'observations on progress' (see
pages 4, 8 and 9). The Government claims that much was
done. Others claim that it’s mostly talk and that nothing
significant or lasting was achieved.
There are two ways to
assess performance here. The first is to go with items, divide the
‘done’ by the ‘promised’, multiply by 100 and come up with a
percentage. The braggers can gloss over the importance or otherwise
of each line item. They can ignore sustainability. For
example, the cuts in fuel prices can be marked as a ‘plus’, but only if it
translated into significant drops in prices of related goods and services (e.g.
bus fares, school van fares, vegetables and other goods that require
transportation). Factor these in and the brag loses its punch.
The other method of
evaluation would begin by giving weight to measures that correct flaws in
structures and processes so that lasting value accrues to things such as the
rule of law, citizenship, democratic freedoms, transparency and
accountability.
Right now there is a
palpable sense of greater freedom when it comes to expression, movement and
association. Right now there is confidence that more value has
accrued to that which is called ‘due process’. However, the rosy
picture has been compromised by the selectivity that has marked
investigations. It is, as of now, bordering on vindictiveness and
has taken a witch-hunt character. ‘Influence’ moreover still counts
at all levels when it comes to the affairs of ordinary
citizens. This is evident in state institutions including police
stations.
More serious is the
unprecedented and scandalous matter of the Central Bank bond
issue. The home-investigating-home kind of process that the
home-owner launched in this regard could not find evidence that the Governor
had indulged in any wrongdoing. What the investigators said was ‘He
was not directly involved’. However, they found that the
organization owned by his son-in-law had ‘behaved strangely’ and recommended
that the Bank of Ceylon (which facilitated a deal that helped him) be investigated. Banks
are supervised by the Central Bank. The problem is information
leakage. This is ascertained by circumstantial
evidence. If the Governor was not directly involved the
circumstances indicate, in the very least, that he may have been indirectly
involved. There is enough suspicion to demand removal, clearly,
especially given the importance of the position. This alone can
outweigh all the positives of the past 100 days.
President Sirisena
correctly pointed out that when ‘freedom’ is new it is natural for the
‘incarcerated’ to cling to incarceration. He did not mention the
flipside of this: those who have for decades helped perpetuate restriction are
not easily weaned of habit. More importantly ‘new found freedom’ is
a natural companion of regime-change. It is generally referred to as
the honeymoon period. Extending that period is inextricably linked
to institutional reform.
One hundred days have
passed since Maithripala Sirisena assumed office. If he promised
T-shirts to 4 persons and a million rupees to a fifth and if he delivered the
T-shirts and not the bucks, it would be silly to say ‘I’ve delivered on 80% of
the promises’. The 19th and 20th amendments
and the Right to Information Act together make the equivalent of the million
rupees above. They remain ‘iffy’.
If assessment is
strict, then we would have to conclude that the people have been short-changed
and so short-changed that even ‘cheated’ can be used. However, if
one considers that promising is easy and even ‘normal’ while delivery is tough,
one can afford to be generous and interject ‘better late than never, they say,
so let’s wait and see a bit longer’.
It all hinges on
structural change, the consummate ‘toughie’ in all this.
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