Massive misuse of state resources irks UNP, JVP

As the Southern Provincial Council poll gets closer to D-day on October 10, the opposition spoke as one on a significant matter: the misuse of state resources by the government. A leading member of the UNP stated that it was a vulgar display of misuse of power. They were he said, taking it up in parliament but the misuse continued unabated which only showcased the arrogance of the ruling party.

Sunil Handunnetti of the JVP said that whilst his party was doing well and especially so if it was a level playing field, was vociferous in his condemnation at the misuse of state resources for the sole benefit of the ruling party. The state media he said was not fair in the least. It was a damning indictment on equality and suggested that the elections could not possibly be fair.

This column was reminded of Navin Dissanayake’s pronouncements sometime ago on this very subject. Suggesting that to a leading UNP Member of Parliament, he said that Navin’s behaviour at that time was shocking as he had dragged his father too into the mire. Such was his brand of politics and if Navin wished to take that line he could but it was not for the UNP: they were made of sterner integrity than that.

Working hard

Sagala Ratnayaka had his work cut out for him in Matara: He was putting in his miles as were his troops. They were loyal and were working hard to make as best an impact as they could in light of the ever increasing use of state resources by the government. Most of the candidates including the UFPA types could not match the resources of Sajin Vaas Gunawardena.

No sooner was it announced that his sibling Manoj, was incurring significant losses at SriLankan Airlines – well over USD90 million – Sajin was already “to ing and fro ing” with considerable ease, matched only by the President himself: Sajin was transporting himself all over the south by personal helicopter! The helicopter is being operated by Deccan for the moment and Sajin is said to be planning on using it at an aviation training school after election use. No one can deny that he is a class act with his “out of the box” ostentatious strategy.

The President not to be left out of the hustings at which he is an absolute natural, toured the south exhorting southerners to vote for the UFPA. In between opening a state of the art administrative block in Hakmana and other official events also in the southern area around Tangalle, he was hosting meeting after meeting – twice daily – at the family grounds in Medamulana. Some 3,500 attend each of these meetings where they meet the President, listen to what he has to say and obligingly assure the President that they would indeed, vote for the UFPA.

The meetings are lively affairs with the crowds cheering the President with great passion and the President openly enjoying himself. He put across a powerful message. There was a need he said, for opposition at every level, within the party, the district, the province but it had to stop there. There was no room he said for opposition to the motherland. That was unacceptable and he took to task those that went abroad and spoke ill of the country. ‘Our problems are ours, we don’t need outsiders interfering. We can talk and discuss and solve these issues amongst ourselves’ was his message.

Though this went down well in a backward electorate he was in fact paying a back handed compliment to Ranil Wickremesinghe in that Ranil could get the international community to do his bidding over that of the President. In Vakarai, the President opened a state of the art school and stated that communalism was now history. There was he said, just two groups: those who love the motherland and those who work against the motherland. We will deal with the second category and it was the people’s responsibility to help his government do that.

Vote of confidence

In other speeches he spoke of the responsibility of voting for the UFPA; he wanted he said a thumping vote of confidence from the south to rival the Uva if need be.

Almost as the President was stating his take on the loyalty of some of his subjects, former President Chandrika Kumaratunga was in India, telling anyone who would listen that despite the war being over there was a fear psychosis in this resplendent isle. The former Head of State slipped back into Sri Lanka and caught a flight to New York as quietly as she could. She was attending the Clinton Global Initiative 2009 in New York. Reports also reached this column that Harry Jayawardena was in New York for this event.

The Beverley Palace was continuing to be constructed amidst a much higher level of security with the villagers and the estate workers placed on high alert – and with cameras and camera phones banned from the site for prudence at least if not privacy and security.

Mangala Samaraweera the chief proponent of the Grand Alliance expected it to be signed imminently; he was candid enough to admit that the date depended on the star gazers. The grass roots have awoken, there was a new and renewed interest in the opposition parties’ supporters and it was fun but the financials remained as elusive as any. The UNP and the other opposition parties have to raise funds from their supporters and corporates whilst the UFPA has almost expeditiously got themselves the “state machinery” with which no one party can compete.

Some of the UNPers were speaking openly about substantial monies that their party had received from India in 2004. Significantly those people were wondering as to what happened to this money especially now that the party needed it the most. There was also the cocktail circuit talk, where it was speculated on that of the 40 odd MPs in the UNP, no sooner the parliamentary elections are over with, they too were set to cross over to the government benches. It was estimated that there would then only be a handful of core UNPers left at Sri Kotha.

Ravi Karunanayake had fruitful and frank discussions with the IMF team. There was no doubt said RK that there was a significant compliance requirement which the government would have to follow – if they were committed to receiving the balance of the monies under the loan arrangements. RK was also paying full attention to the debate on foreign policy on Friday in parliament.

A large gathering made up of the full spectrum of political parties and the diplomatic corps gathered at India House to bid farewell to Alok Prasad amidst much bonhomie.

The Supreme Court decision in connection with P.B. Jayasundera took most by surprise including Vasudeva Nanayakkara, the petitioner. He preferred to wait until he saw the reasoning before making a considered statement.