The Joker Who Got A Jackpot
Raazi Mohmamadh
Never had there been a Political mayhem in the post independent history of Sri Lanka as we are witnessing nowadays. Watching the breaking news on television since 26th of October is as if you are watching a horror movie in a 3-D theater, sitting on the edge of the seat bamboozled as to what is going to happen next, making yourself ready for the vertiginous shock.
Then a Twitter notification chirps. You are flummoxed and high as a kite, sometimes shaking in your shoes just to open the tweet. Then you read who joined whose camp, what the price for ones defection is and what bomb is in which parcel.
It is really unfortunate to witness an artificial, self created dogfight between the values of democracy, Rule of Law, Constitutionality and Power hankering, perfidious, egotistical politicians like Mahinda Rajapaksa and Maithripala Sirisena.
All what happened so far is nothing but a set of obnoxious misdemeanors that has brought this country almost to the brink of political extinction, rupture of Rule of Law and guillotine of democracy by Mahinda and Maithri made sword.
Sri Lankan civil war had been the main subject in the election propaganda of all political parties since 1970. No presidential or parliamentary election campaign in Sinhala populated area would conclude without the mentioning of Civil War-how it has shattered the country and a pledge to end it if the speakers’ party is elected to power. Defeating the LTTE, upholding the unitary status of the country, eliminating the elements that challenge the sovereignty of the Island had long been persuasive arguments in Sinhala populated areas during elections when delivered with stage blowing oratory with hypertensive vocabulary.
As soon as the Civil War was over, tactical arrows for election propaganda ran out of the quiver for big shot politicians who had been dreaming for presidency and playing with LTTE factor as election strategy. “I defeated the LTTE”had been a convincing catchphrase of Mahinda Rajapaksa for some time that made every Sinhalese feel that he/she owes Mahinda Rajapaksa his/her vote as a loyal tribute for defeating terrorism. He was elected second time as president with a sweeping victory using his apophthegm “I defeated LTTE”
When days pass memories fade away. Mahinda Rajapaksa could not hold on to his argument of “I defeated LTTE” for a long time. When the LTTE factor dried up Mahinda Rajapaksa needed something to shoot at people to win their votes. There came Muslim Factor. Emergence of BBS during his tenure was another catastrophe. Sinhalese and Muslims who had been living as neighbors for centuries started to look at each other as their enemies.BBS with Mahinda’s blessing has left a permanent scar that can be erased by any cream.
His pro-China stand, Controlling of 80+ percentage of countries economy by three of his brothers, killing of journalists, human Rights violations during the last days of the Civil War, deep-rooted corruptions, High rocketing debt brought the country to rack and ruin.Sri Lankans were subject to -in the past years -mind boggling wretchedness in their daily lives during the callous reign of Mahinda Rajapaksa.The tenure of MR Has changed the cause of history in Sri Lanka. but regardless of the havoc he caused to this country, Rajapaksa set his heart on a third term, a clear example of desperate longing for puissance.
