Midst the politics of rebirth and voodoo 

July 10, 2015, 7:06 pm

When the history of the current nomination period in Sri Lanka is written there will be much said about the silence maintained on key issues by today’s leader of the SLFP, who does have a great responsibility on the matter and is certainly not placed in an easy position, with party unity more important than a corrupt free democracy. Yet it is time to recall the words of Martin Luther King Jr, the champion of the democratic rights of the black people of the USA, that: " There comes a time when silence is betrayal". We may not have to await the records of history to feel the public thinking on this matter today.

Whatever history may have to say, there are many interesting thoughts afloat about what has become a hugely g crooked game of politics taking place today in the run up to nominations for the coming general election. When all the current give and take on crooked politics is over, July 13 is when the public will know the whole truth, or whatever that has not so far been leaked through the media. With many people believing that 13 is an unlucky number, with the origins of such thinking going back to the 13 who sat at the Last Supper of Jesus Christ; and one of them was Judas Iscariot, let’s not ponder on the luck or not of 13.

Instead, let’s hope that 13 has nothing unlucky or foreboding about it, and that we do have a good and clean election, where "MaCo" or the lively Commissioner General of Elections plays another big role in the cause of democracy.

All this apart, what interested me very much was the latest twist in crossover politics that was heard earlier this week. It came from the dark one from Uva, who seems to hold the record for recent double or triple crossovers in politics. After his first leap into the ranks of victory after January 8, he said the reason for the jump was that his leader" apuchcha" or father, as Mahinda Rajapaksa was lovingly known to his supporters in the run up to the poll, was dead. He later also said he did not want to carry the body of a dead "apuchcha". We now hear the man, having done a re- crossover, back to his old ranks, tell us that "apuchcha" has been reborn, so he is now on the side of the re-born.

We are now in the politics of rebirth. There is little doubt that the vast number of those of the recently dissolved parliament would love to make it known to the voters that they have all been reborn into the world of politics. Such political rebirth will be most helpful in erasing from the minds of the people the whole record of crooked politics that those who formed a formidable majority in the last parliament so brazenly displayed.

Such a record of rebirth may enable people forget how (in their previous birth) they helped the former leader to improve on a simple majority in parliament, have a two-thirds majority in the House, with those clearly purchased, through the offer of political office and all the perks and special privileges that went with it.

It may also help people forget, or set aside memories, of how they were part of the largest ever Cabinet of Ministers in any democracy, with the Cabinet of the current minority government, of Yahapaalanaya, coming very close to breaking that record.

For those who have no religious belief in rebirth, it will also be interesting to see if they can tell us that they have been to confession, where they declared all the political and other sins associated with office and position they have committed, and that they have carried out the penance ordered for the forgiveness of such sins, if such huge forgiveness is ever possible.

Rebirth or penance and forgiveness apart, the campaign for election to the next parliament that has already been launched, will certainly have a great deal to do with religion, or the symbols of it. These will include both secret and publicized visits to various places of religious worship, especially to Hindu devalas, where the assistance of deities will be sought for success when the votes are counted. It may happen that some of these are shrines known for animal a sacrifice, but who would care if the best results can come even through sacrificed animals? There will also be visits to churches and other centres of prayer, where divine assistance will be sought with vows and various offerings, for another term in the seats of Parliament, where the interests of the people will be forgotten, no sooner the swearing in as a new MP is done.

The game will be on from Monday the 13th. There will be plenty of political antics on display, and every possible effort to fool, the people, by politicians and leaders of experience, as to how best their past records could and must be forgotten, and a brand new chance given to keep the people fooled for the next five years.

All this talk of rebirth and the search for spiritual support to win the minds of the people, after many years of betrayal of the people’s will and rights, makes one wonder whether we are fast moving on to the zombie or voodoo politics known Haiti and other Caribbean countries, where the supernatural forces are said to reanimate the forces of the dead.

Let’s hope August 17 brings us to the decisive end of rebirth and voodoo politics.