The Big Ifs in Sirisena politics 

President Maithripala Sirisena-April 6, 2018, 11:14 pm

The Big NCM is over, and it looks like this is the time of the Big IF.

The SLFP Cabinet Ministers who voted for the NCM will resign their portfolios only IF the President tells them to do so.

Now isn’t that really great? They await a presidential directive to do what is accepted as gentlemanly behavior. These are cabinet ministers who voted against, and to remove from office, the Prime Minister of the same Cabinet. They don’t have any principles of decency or even know of such decency, which would require their resignation from office after such an act in the August Assembly, known for many decades as a place of privileged and decent behavior, unlike it is today - the House of Privileged Rowdyism.

They are certainly sure of one thing – such decency does not flow from the Executive Presidency with its powers curbed by the 19th Amendment. How can the President who asked Ranil Wickremesinghe to resign after they both lost to the Pohottuva in the local govt polls – the UNP coming a distant second and the SLFP coming am very remote third – be expected to ask his catcher ministers who voted against and to remove the same Ranil to resign, do anything but keep them in office?

The Presidency is very much a mockery today … but for his own political catchers, including those defeated in the polls,but given portfolios by him – to expect the President to ask for anything decent today is certainly the height of absurdity.

For the record, it is the Joint Opposition (JO) that lost in the vote on the NCM, because it was brought by the JO, with four SLFP ministers of this government.

But, the biggest loser was certainly the SLFP – led by President Maithripala Sirisena. We are now in the midst of more jiggery-pokery by that party, trying to hide the ignominious defeat it faced by throwing blame at different players in the NCM vote. There is one group who said very openly that President Sirisena asked the SLFP members in government to vote for the NCM against his Prime Minister. There is now another group – the Absent Brigade of the Blues – who stayed away from the vote, having different story. They say the SLFP Parliamentary Group had unanimously decided to abstain in the voting on the NCM, at a meeting chaired by President Sirisena.

Do you think the President will say which side is true? Not very likely; knowing how readily he abandons the best of decisions – such as the pledge given at the funeral of the Ven. Maduluwawe Sobitha Thera not to seek re-election, or the pledge given to the people in January 2015 to fight and eradicate the corruption of the Rajapaksa Regime.

What the country is facing today is a hugely divided government. There is nothing of the sense of unity that prevailed in the early days of ‘Yahapalanaya". That ‘yaha"or ‘good’ palanaya or governance has now very much a ‘yama’ or devil’s governance, with special leadership from Royal College, Polonnaruwa, just now defeated by Royal, Colombo.

After all that loud and screaming politics, by the JO and many of the SLFP backed by its leader, President Sirisena, looks like we are back to another NCM round. The UNP wants to move No Confidence Motions on all ministers of the SLFP who voted against the Prime Minister. From the prevailing arithmetic of parliamentary seating,these NCMs could very well be passed, without the support of the TNA. One will have to see how the Muslim Ministers and MPs who supported Ranil, will address this issue. Will they all be absent? Which means Ranil can win all the way.

How long are we to face this farce of governance? The President’s Office says a committee is to be appointed to inquire into appointing a new cabinet and distribution of ministerial subjects. Does this mean that Sirisena has picked the Wickremesinghe game on the use of committees? Rather, is it not the complete failure of a Presidency, which needs a committee to give advice on cabinet members and their subjects? The Presidency in Sri Lanka has no idea of the substance and method of democratic governance, whether it is the Westminster or Washington style. It is moving into a Sri Lankan Committee Democracy – is it Sinhala Buddhist too, with the assurance of protecting corruption and fraud and every aspect of crooked politics.

Sri Lanka has suffered the disaster of both Sirisena and Wickremesinghe, whether in major or minor class, giving no ear to the pledges given to the people in 2015. How long can this mockery of democracy go on? If it goes on with this farce any longer, will this not be the easiest path for the return of the Rajapaksas? What IF it happens? Will it be the revival of the SLFP without a Sirisena leadership? Why not appoint another committee to look at the IFs and What's of not so distant politics?