Economic and social rejuvenation our aim - Cabraal
 

BY UDITHA Kumarasinghe

AJITH Nivard Cabraal is a well known corporate figure. A leading Charted Accountant and economist he was a former President of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka and also was the first Chairman of the Committee on Cooperate Governance.

He is the author of several books in both Sinhala and English. He ventured into politics contesting the Western Provincial Council election in 1999 as a member of the UNP and was a council member till 2004.

He is the Economic Adviser to Prime Minister and UPFA Presidential candidate Mahinda Rajapakse.

Cabraal in an interview with the Daily News expressed his views on the policies and programmes contained in Premier Rajapakse's Presidential Manifesto `Mahinda Chintana.'

Q: You are planning to bring in the budget before the Presidential Election is this feasible?

A: Certainly. Because the date of the budget was set out long before the Presidential Election was announced. This a Presidential Election, not a General Election. When it is a Presidential Election, the Parliamentary business and other matters relating to budget should continue.

Q: How do you explain incorporating `Mahinda Chintana' proposals into the budget when financial allocations have already been made for the original budget viz. the Appropriation Bill ?

A: The Appropriation Bill will carry the expenditure and the income which has already been estimated.

If there is a new idea to be translated as part of country's plan of action that has to be reflected in the budget, this can be done as an amendment or an adjustment to the Appropriation Bill making new expenditure providing further additional allocations to implement the programmes suggested in Mahinda Chintana.

In addition, any new areas of income or cash flows that may arise will also have to be set out. Therefore the final budget will have items of this nature.

Q: Being a strong advocate of the market economy, do you see problems ahead in the event of victory for the UPFA candidate given the JVP's strong insistence on an indigenous economy?

A: The indigenous economy is in no way against the market economy. Because we can have an indigenous economy which is pro-market. "Mahinda Chintana" has set out this very clearly and it is not for a closed economy. It is definitely for an open economy. We can have a national economy within an open economy.

UNP Presidential candidate Ranil Wickremesinghe is saying that there is nothing called a balanced economy. Of course there is, no question about it. A balanced economy is where all sections of the economy are balanced to ensure that the final outcome is a fruitful and beneficial for the people. That is nothing to do with open, close and all that. All these are labels.

We want to ensure that people will benefit by the economic activities which are going to take place and they will also be a part of the economic growth and their income will also improve.

If the people are starving there is no use saying that inflation has come down, our balance of payment is good or our overall macro economic sectors are good. We have to ensure proper economic benefits to the people.

The JVP as a part of the UPFA is a good trend. The business sector should be comfortable that the JVP wants to subscribe to this. This is a 'Chintana' which has the blessings of the JVP as well.

If anybody can say any item in this manifesto is not friendly towards businessmen or anti-business, we will have to relocate. But it is not. The JVP has extended its fullest support to this business friendly manifesto.

Q: What are the key differences you see between two manifestos of UPFA and UNP candidates ?

A: Rajapakse's manifesto has been designed towards our local entrepreneurs and local enterprises. For example, 'Mahinda Chintana' has suggested developing the dairy industry. Rajapakse has ensured a guaranteed price for fresh milk and various other facilities needed to develop the dairy industry.

UNP Presidential candidate Wickremesinghe has pledged to give imported milk powder to the people at a low price. This means the UNP is going to subsidise the foreign dairy farmers.

Therefore people can see a huge contrast between the philosophy of these two manifestos. One is towards the local farmers and local entrepreneurs while the other is towards foreign farmers and foreign enterprises.

The UNP is attempting to encourage the people to drink imported milk. If they have done this to the Highland milk, it would have been not so bad. Highland milk will now have to compete with foreign milk which has been given all benefits and delivered at a low price. This is actually killing the local dairy industry.

Right throughout 'Mahinda Chintana' people can see Rajapakse's focus is towards the local industry, local entrepreneurs. Ranil Wickremesinghe's manifesto is entirely the other way. The small and medium scale industry need to be supported. If we don't support Sri Lankans whom we are going to support?

Even in America they say buy American and support the American industry. Only in Sri Lanka, we are saying something different. We have to change this thinking. This is the key difference between the Rajapakse and Wickremesinghe manifestos.

Q: Are you confident of support from lending agencies despite the JVP factor?

A: Of course. We have to look at this in another way. Let's say if we get money today, what is the money that we are repaying today?

The money that our country is repaying today is not the money that we borrowed yesterday. This is the money that the country has borrowed 20 or 30 years ago. So who knows that who is going to repay?

No Government, institution or lending agency will know at the time of repayment what Government of this country is going to be. But they know that they are lending or giving their grants to Sri Lanka, not to JVP, UNP or somebody else. Money is being given to the country.

This is the story that certain sections are saying in order to side track the whole issue highlighting that if the JVP is there, we won't get aid. How do we know the if the JVP will be there in another 10 years time.

The repayment will have to be done by somebody else. Therefore these are fabricated stories. Governments give aid and other grants based on the country's progress, not for political parties.

Q: How do you expect to reconcile foreign aid ambitions with the UPFA's stand on the peace process?

A: We have to take a decision if what Rajapakse says is equal to peace or war. Some are trying to say that he is for war. What type of country have we today? Our constitution spells out a unitary state. Are we having a war? We can very easily structure the devolution of powers in our country where we have a good administration within the identical structure that we have.

India has a unitary constitution. What we should do is not to fight over these terminology like unitary, united or Eksesath. Wickremesinghe in his People's Agenda uses the Sinhala word Eksesath which means a Unitary state as well as he also talks about Eksath, a united state in the English translation of his manifesto.

Finally Wickremesinghe is talking about having a basis where the power can be devolved. Rajapakse is also talking this same thing.

I don't think there is a magic in this word federal and everybody is going to give Rs.4.5 billion on the word federal. Because anyone can use the word federal and do something else. What is important then is to recognise that there is a conscious decision to have a negotiated settlement.

Rajapakse's manifesto very clearly states that he wants to have a negotiated settlement to the ethnic problem. He has not mentioned even a single word that he wants to go to war or he is not going to talk to the LTTE.

He has not said anything that provokes war. He has said that he will talk to everybody and wants to ensure this is an inclusive process where the people can air their views to have a national consensus on this issue.

"There is no right whatsoever to disregard a certain section of the majority population just because we don't like to hear their voice. We can never do that. We have to ensure that this is an inclusive process.

Successful negotiations and peace talks have been aired all over the world with all the people and all stakeholders been involved in the process. Rajapakse's formula is also exactly that. Any mature person will understand that this is the right approach.

Already the Premier has had discussions with some countries and he has had a very good response from them. They have said that there is no magic in one word or another. They want to see a process. That process has been set out very clearly in 'Mahinda Chintana'.

I am very confident that almost every country will work with Rajapakse entertaining the hope towards a peaceful settlement. At the same time, they will make their investments as well.

There is no basis for anyone to say that if Rajapakse comes to power, there will be a war or there won't be investments. This is a totally bankrupt suggestion which was rejected from the very beginning.

Q: Do you think the Premier has clearly stated his stand on this ethnic issue in his manifesto?

A: Certainly. It is very clear there is no ambiguity quite unlike in what Wickremesinghe has mentioned in his manifesto on two different kinds of united and unitary states confusing the people. Rajapakse has said that he will devolve power under a unitary state.

There are many countries in the world which have successfully devolved power under this model. Premier Rajapakse has also said that if the overall majority view is something different, he will abide by that also.

All leaders should understand that it is not their overall view that should prevail, it is a majority view. That is what we call democracy. The majority view will prevail in a democracy.

Q: How do you plan to revive the rural economy?

A: The development of rural economy is very well set out in Rajapakse's manifesto. Many of the projects such as agriculture revival, small and medium scale industries and enterprises have been earmarked for the rural community.

The benefits of the development goes right down to small and medium scale industries and also right down to the individuals in rural areas.

Q: What are your plans to increase Government revenue?

A: Government revenue will automatically increase when the Government has an overall GDP. "We are looking at this growth. We are not thinking of imposing taxes to place burdens on the people. If the cake is bigger, the share of the Government out of that cake will also improve.

The Government will have sufficient revenue on that basis. In some investment areas, the Government will act as a catalyst encouraging other sources to invest money and also bringing necessary capital for those areas.

Q: What are your plans to eliminate poverty and is it better than the UNP's proposed Siyasaviya?

A: We have proposed to increased the Samurdhi benefits by 50 per cent. At present the Samurdhi benefit is subject to a minimum Rs.140 minimum and a maximum Rs.1000.

Based on these figures, at present Rs.9 billion is spent to give the Samurdhi subsidy. If the Premier's manifesto has proposed to increase Samurdhi by 50 per cent, the total amount required to give the Samurdhi subsidy will have to be increased to Rs.13.5 billion.

In addition, another Rs.3 billion will be allocated to generate new opportunities to obtain more income to Samurdhi beneficiaries. Through these initiatives we hope to increase the income of Samurdhi beneficiaries.

The UNP which came to power in 2001 completely did away with the subsidy of 650,000 Samurdhi beneficiaries. The UNP has pledged to increase the minimum amount of Rs.140 Samurdhi subsidy to Rs.1000 and the maximum of Rs.1000 subsidy to Rs.4000. This shows the minimum is going up seven fold and the maximum four fold.

This is a six fold increase of the total amount of the money spent on Samurdhi subsidy. The total commitment of UNP's proposed Siyasaviya will be around Rs.54 billion. The UNP which was not keen to pay even Rs.9 billion to Samurdhi subsidy will never do this.

Q: After having being a strong advocate of the open economy. You are now suddenly supporting a mixed economic concept. Why?

A: I have been supporting an economy of the nature contained 'Mahinda Chintana' for a long time. Today there is nothing called an open or closed economy. All these are labels. No country in the world is totally opened or closed.

All have mixed economies. I have always been a proponent of a mixed economy. We have to look at what is the best for the people. Finally both the country and the people should benefit from the economic fillip.

Q: Your comments on the UNP's statement that 'Mahinda Chintana' has ignored the SLFP policies?

A: Why is the UNP worried about the SLFP policies, if the SLFP is not worried about it. Because the SLFP knows that 'Mahinda Chintana' has represented its view especially the policies enunciated by late Prime Minister S.W.R.D.Bandaranaike.

The main platform which based on Bandaranaike's campaign `Panchamaha Balawegaya'(Sanga, Veda, guru, govi and Kamkaru) is included in Mahinda Chintana. All these key five areas are very well covered by the manifesto. The manifesto has safeguarded the fundamental concepts of the SLFP.