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| Saturday, 21 February 2004 |
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Politics | |
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| The "National List": The Political coward's final refuge By The Monitor Nominations have not yet closed and the manaapa poraya has not begun. Petty politicking, however, is going on apace. Elections are expensive affairs. Candidates and parties have to pocket out big bucks for posters, banners, tons and tons of polythene, handbills, help kaarayas, newspaper, radio and TV advertisements, political rallies and what not. Thugs and assassins too, if we are to go by the track record of your average politician. This is a time they have to unloosen their purse strings. They spend millions, just so they win the opportunity to serve us, the people. Or so they would have us believe. It is an open secret that for Mr. And Ms. Random Politician, the money spent on elections has a one word label in the cost-benefit sheet that is political calculation: "investment". If they win, they know they will obtain a handsome return on investment. That's the bottom line of politicians and elections. In short, your average politician is a business person. A mudalali. Now mudalalis, especially the successful ones, are shrewd investors. They look to the profit margin and even someone who knows next to nothing about economics knows the relevant equation: Profit margin - Return - Investment - Operational Costs. The most successful mudalali is one who maximises "Returns" while minimising "Operational Costs" after a paltry investment. This is the logic that fuels the other manaapa poraya, the one that precedes the real manaapa poraya. Meaning of course the clamour for a spot on national lists. I vaguely remember that the logic of bringing in "National Lists" into the relevant section of the constitution, was that there were too many passengers making their way into parliament, actually, they were more than mere "passengers". They were the pits in terms of honesty integrity and skill. So much so that one can't really argue with anyone who describes that place on the Diyawanna Oya as a cesspit. The National List was supposed to give some respectability to the chamber. It was not meant to be a refugee camp and certainly not the kind of half-way-house for incompetents that it has become to most. Nominations close early next week. I would wage my entire salary, paltry though it is, that the party officers and party leaders are as we speak being harangued by political cheapskates and/or cowards, all making the same plea: "Please include me in the National List!" Anyone who makes such a plea ought to be disqualified by the fact. Party leaders, if they have any sense and if they want to paint some credibility into their respective personalities, must nominate to National Lists people who have a clean and distinguished track record among the non-nomination-seekers. They should show the door to the groveling cowards who want to have the cake and eat it, those who are scared to go before the people and yet want to be "people's representatives". The last time around, the "national lists" of both the PA and the UNF were full of political refugees. While the clamour from even people like Batty Weerakoon was disgusting, so too were the final lists when they were read out. People like "Loku Athula" Nimalasiri Jayasinghe (rejected by the people) found their way into parliament through the PA's back door. There were other passengers outside of the minority-parties who naturally extracted their mas raaththala by way of slots in the national list. As for the UNF, it not only made way for many ex-PA men, foul mouthed and crooked, but went onto give them important portfolios. More than this, people like G. L. Peiris, un-elected and a proven track-record of being clueless about anything constitutional that has nothing to do with tinkering, were put in charge of negotiating away the sovereignty of the people to the LTTE. Peiris won handsomely in 2000 on the PA ticket. The poor man, a dignified academic until 1994 (we all know how poorly academics are paid), threw millions into what turned out to be one of the richest campaigns carried out by an individual in the election. Come 2001, he jumps a ship he has done more than a little to scuttle, and appears in parliament as a UNF national list MP. Good for him. Since he believes he has done so much for the people, why is he trying so hard to come through the National List this time too? Surely, isn't it elementary political logic for the party leadership to nominate as candidates the best performers? If G. L. has done so much, the people will show their appreciation on April 2. He would be a vote-puller and would help his party in a big way. What is the problem? Fear? Wanting to maximize profits through zero investment? I don't know who else is trying to get into which national list. I am pretty sure there are cheapskates and political-rejects/refugees in both the main alliances contesting this time. Here's a tip to party leaders: if you want to clean up your party of crooks, racketeers, cowards and tightfisted jokers, throw them into the ring. Let all those who have robbed the treasury, lied to the people, used strong-armed tactics on the unarmed and innocent, all the comis-kaakkas,all the big-mouthed non-contributors, go before the people. Better yet, leave them all out. It would send a strong signal to potential political refugees. Anyway, I am sure the people would love to see the GL's of this country come before them on a gen-geta vyaparaya. Please Mr. Prime Minister and Madam President, let the people have the privilege of being able to greet these people and tell them things they need to hear and ought to have heard a long time ago. |
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