Corruption takes its toll not only on a country’s economy but also on its very social fabric, causing things to fall apart, if left unaddressed. Therefore, it is only natural that the civic-minded people have risen against governments both here and overseas demanding tough anti-graft laws.
UNP National List MP Harsha de Silva has told The Sunday Island (of Sept. 04) that the corrupt must be named and shamed in this country. Yes, it should be done, but much more stringent action is called for if we are to tackle the vexed problem effectively.
The corrupt may be named but their hides are so thick that it is well-nigh impossible to shame them, we reckon. They have no sense of shame, to begin with. How can one shame the shameless? Look at the present-day parliamentarians. They draw fat salaries and attractive pensions paid with poor people’s money and enjoy various perks such as duty free vehicle permits, soft loans (to be paid back in ludicrously low installments), free fuel, foreign junkets, heavily subsidised food at the parliamentary canteen and the like, but it is not infrequently that the House has to be adjourned for want of a quorum. If a public employee is found guilty of such dereliction of duty, he or she has to undergo severe punishment. But, the lawmakers, by virtue of their privileges, go scot free and public funds to the tune of millions of rupees spent on maintaining Parliament go down the gurgler without MPs to take part in debates. In Sept, 2007, we pointed out in these columns that food sufficient for over 2,000 people was thrown out from the Parliamentary canteen every month. This kind of criminal waste of food occurs in a country where over 25 per cent of children are malnourished and most of the poor who constitute about one half of the population hit the sack on empty stomachs! So, how can anyone shame such politicians?
In this country, any notorious crook responsible for the plunder of public wealth can rest assured that he or she will be able to secure nominations from either the SLFP or the UNP to contest elections––parliamentary, provincial or local government. Wasn’t it the other day that Prime Minister D. M. Jayaratne made a very candid statement in Parliament that some politicians were involved in narcotics trade?
Regrettably, among the self-appointed campaigners against corruption, we see some hypocrites long in the tooth and out of power such as politicians, bureaucrats and judicial officers notorious for having abused their privileged positions to have court cases against them thrown out and get away after being caught with women in compromising positions inside official vehicles after dusk in public places on the way home (gedera yana gaman), licking political boots/sandals, taking bribes in kind for perverting the course of justice and manipulating the judiciary in every conceivable way in favour of the powers that be, before taking to judicial activism in a bid to be popular in time for retirement. When such people try to do an ‘Anna Hazare’, the discerning public exclaim: Ane Apoi! They are, in our book, like a group of aged women of easy virtue, who, unable to practise the oldest profession any longer, are condemning adultery! The less said about them, the better!
Corruption of the present government stinks to high heaven, period. It must be battled with might and main all right. But, that is a task best left to the public figures without a history of corruption and abuse of power. They alone are capable of mobilising public support for that noble cause. True, we may have to look for them a la Diogenes of Sinope, who went, carrying a lamp, in search of an honest man in broad daylight. However, we are not without such honourable men and women to fight for us. Let the search begin!
Harsha is one of the few parliamentarians keen to make a difference in politics and they should therefore deserve encouragement and assistance from the public. However, they have to pluck up the courage to come out and take the battle to the government without trying to fight it from a safe distance through the pages of newspapers. Public resentment over mega rackets under the incumbent political dispensation such as the CPC hedging deal, the purchase of steel flyovers that cannot take heavy vehicles and the importation of low quality petrol, cement sans quality certification and substandard pharmaceuticals, have gone untapped.
Similarly, it behoves Harsha and other Opposition lawmakers who have donned the armour of crusade to put their own house in order, first. They must name the UNP politicians responsible for the various corrupt deals under the UNP-led UNF government (2001-2004), including the illegal sale of Sri Lanka Insurance, exposed by the COPE and a condemnable amnesty for notorious racketeers such as tax defaulters causing an enormous loss to the State coffers to the tune of billions of rupees.
The Island: Editorial
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Naming and shaming is the way to go: Harsha
September 3, 2011, 6:54 pm
By Shamindra Ferdinando
Outspoken UNP MP Harsha de Silva said the UPFA would never humiliate those crooks near and dear to the leadership as long as they remained faithful to the incumbent administration.
The consultant economist said: “‘Name and shame’ is a way of discouraging certain wrong activity and has been used for a long time in many countries.
“Recently the law enforcement agencies contemplated releasing photographs of some women, including victims, for ‘acting’ in pornographic movies.”
Commenting on the arrest of two thieves at Bharathipuram, Kilinochchi in the early hours of Friday (Sept.2) by the elite police commandos, the MP said that those robbing food items due to poverty were being arrested and prosecuted while ‘mega’ crooks rub shoulders with politicians.
The MP was referring to the arrest of two persons, Sriram Vijikan and Subramanium Thawaseelan along with 41 kgs of rice, 26 pieces of soap, one 400 g anchor milk powder packet, two chocolate biscuits packets, 1.750 kgs of tea and three tubes of tooth paste.
This was nothing but a cruel joke, he said. The government should be ashamed of what was actually going on in spite of repeated vows to make Sri Lanka wonder of Asia.
“However, when it comes to the rich and powerful it is a different story. I doubt very much the Government has the spine to name tax dodgers or massive loan defaulters. I am now fully convinced it is the ugly nexus between tax dodgers, certain politicians and corrupt officials that prevent them from being named and shamed.
“Some of these day-light rogues have even become ‘Honourable’ MPs and Ministers; what a sorry state of affairs! The fact of the matter is that while these powerful and wealthy tax dodging criminals enjoy ‘pink salmon’ at 5 star hotels the poor are burdened with more taxes to sustain the former’s wasteful lifestyles and to repay the hugely expensive commercial loans.”
The National List MP was responding to The Sunday Island query whether Sri Lanka should follow a recent decision of Greece to name companies accused of major tax evasion on the Internet in an effort to boost weak revenues that were undermining the country’s financial recovery.
International wire services quoted Greek Finance Minister Evengelos Venizelos as having said that individuals would be named in the new tax campaign, following consultation with privacy protection authorities.
Poor revenues in the crisis-hit country are threatening deficit reduction targets agreed as part of international bailout loan deals.
The UNPer said that Sri Lanka was experiencing major difficulties, though the Rajapaksa regime was acting as if nothing could upset their grandiose plans.
The MP said: “However more and more responsible Governments around the world are now beginning to name and shame tax dodgers in a way that is not overstepping the power of the disclosure of information.
“For instance in the UK, HM Revenue and Customs will begin to name tax dodgers of more than GBP 25,000 who have been penalized and upon completion of the appeals process for deliberate tax evasion for the tax year beginning on 1 April 2010. The names are to be published for a 12 month period starting no later than 12 months from the date of penalty.”
“No one must be penalized for being successful and making money. But they must also contribute their fair share in taxes to provide public goods to society. Given that the Government has taken forward the UNP’s thinking in reducing the tax rates, professionals and business people must at least now become more civic minded and pay their self calculated taxes. It is the right thing to do. If not, they must be willing to be named and shamed; may not be now, but some day in the future.”
The MP said that nothing had been done to tackle waste and corrupting, though President Mahinda Rajapaksa at the end of war in May 2009 assured the nation he would eradicate corruption the way he defeated the LTTE.