Provincial Councillors and
pensions
Provincial Councils have correctly being labelled a
huge white elephant guzzling the ill affordable resources of the
State. The system has come in for severe criticism both from the
public as well as political commentators calling for its
abolition. Even without such opinion it is obvious to all that
this is a wasteful exercise with little or no benefit to the
public.
Today hardly any one is aware of what functions or duties
these PCs perform. Public roads and amenities continue to remain
in the sorry mess that it always is. On the contrary PCs have
come to be recognized as stumbling blocks for development. We
often hear of stalemates between Cabinet Ministers and PCs on
the proprietorship of development projects stemming from the
concurrent list. This has given Cabinet Ministers a ready excuse
for shirking on their job. On the other hand the PCs too trots
out the excuse that funds are not released by the Centre due to
this impasse. We often come across such excuses in Parliament
debates. In the end the project is at a standstill and the
public made to suffer.
PCs are so shadowy and vague the public is in the dark where
to go or whom to contact to attend to their problems that come
under the purview of PCs. Even the Chief Minister is an elusive
figure and who the Provincial Ministers are known only to a very
few. PCs were established under the 13th Amendment with the
chief aim of devolving power to the North East but eventually
became operative in all provinces other than the North East
until the re establishment of the defunct PCs in the North and
East after the war.
In the meantime it was carnival time for our own Provincial
Councillors here in the South with their perks and privileges
second only to their Parliamentary colleagues. They enjoy duty
free vehicles the same as their esteemed counterparts in the
August Assembly and free jaunts abroad paid for by the taxpayer.
And like their erstwhile seniors at the Diyawanna the Government
and Opposition who are at each other’s throats most of the time
invariably join forces to vote on and protect their perks and
privileges.
What they did not have upto now was the pensions given to
their Parliamentary counterparts after ‘serving’ a mere five
years. Now this too is in the offing with our Provincial
Councillors too all but certain to receive pension benefits to
match their Parliament colleagues.
The Government should reconsider this clamour by Provincial
Councillors for pensions since they have already fattened
themselves enough at the taxpayers’ expense. To grant them
pensions on top of this would indeed be an abomination. We have
said this before and repeat the fact that the Provincial
Councils serve only as a stepping stone for its members to enter
Parliament and nothing else.
This can be gauged from the identity of those contesting
Provincial polls. A good majority of them are the kith and kin
of Ministers and sitting MPs - a negation of the concept of
devolution of power where the voice of the grass roots
politician should be brought to the fore. Instead we have PC
members grooming themselves for higher things taking the voters
for a jolly good ride. One need not go further than closely
study the composition of the present Parliament to bear this
out.
Besides, these Provincial Councillors have amassed enough
wealth and live a life of luxury and opulence not unlike their
Parliament colleagues. Some of them like their erstwhile
counterparts at the House by the Diyawanna have become wealthy
overnight. If any decision is taken with regard to pensions, the
Government is equally duty bound to inquire into the sources of
such wealth.
Besides, making them eligible for a pension after such a
short span of five years while they continue amassing ill gotten
wealth is not only a grave injustice but also an insult to
intelligence of the public - especially when one considers the
long years of service that has to be put in by a poor Government
servant to be eligible for pension rights.
If granted at all only those deserving should be made
eligible. The concession should be granted only after a thorough
inspection of the income and assets of these PCs. An eligibility
criteria should be worked out strictly based on such findings.
Pensions should not be granted across the board.
The Government should also keep close tabs on the functioning
of these PCs which are synonymous with waste and corruption.
Ideally the whole concept of PCs should come under scrutiny. As
is well known our PCs duplicate work at the centre. Some time
ago it was revealed that the only function performed by a
certain Provincial Council was to pay the salaries of teachers
in the Provincial schools. Are we paying princely salaries
coupled with huge perks and privileges to Provincial Councillors
for functions such as this? An amendment should be brought to
the Provincial Council Act to streamline the PCs and most
importantly make it a truly grass roots edifice justifying its
existence and not function as a nursery for the next generation
of Parliamentarians. |