The Island Editorial

A question of refuse 

Tuesday 27th October 2015

UNP MP Buddhika Pathirana, who had the rare honour of not being appointed a member of the jumbo Cabinet of the incumbent government, has sought to raise a very important issue in Parliament. Pointing out that Sri Lanka’s image as the best cinnamon exporter in the world has been tarnished by a racket which has come to be taken for granted, he wants to know from the Minister of Plantation Industries what action the government has taken against the racketeers concerned. Substandard cinnamon stocks have been returned by some foreign buyers, the MP has said, urging the government to name the errant exporters and mention the amount of the rejected spice.

Sri Lanka is a racketeers’ paradise. They have already ruined the country’s reputation as a tea exporter. Large stocks of refuse tea find their way into the export market besides being consumed locally. Successive governments have been battling the well established refuse tea Mafia, but without much success. The STF continues to conduct raids and take into custody huge consignments of what is known as sweepings, but much more remains to be done to put an end to this multi-billion-rupee racket. The country’s cinnamon trade, too, is likely to face the same fate as its tea exports unless remedial measures are adopted urgently.

The cinnamon export racket is not the only problem that requires a solution. There is another––a bigger one at that. Important as MP Pathirana’s query may be, it is likely to go unanswered for some time though it is already on the order paper of Parliament. For, the cinnamon trade is a subject that comes under purview of the Ministry of Development Strategies and International Trade and not the Ministry of Plantation Industries. If an MP like Pathirana, one of the few intelligent members of the present Parliament, is all at sea as regards the allocation of ministerial subjects and functions how confused ordinary people are goes without saying.

The Rajapaksa government was also faced with a similar situation; most of its ministers were struggling to figure out what their subjects and functions were. Chaos becomes inevitable when Cabinets are expanded to ensure that every joker within government ranks secures a ministerial post.

The past several Cabinets have been like the proverbial curate’s egg. The previous government had a separate minister for sugar, and if Mahinda Rajapaksa had succeeded in his third presidential bid perhaps separate ministries would have been created for tea, water and milk as well so as to reward crossovers from the Opposition. However, the Jan. 08 regime change has not made much of a difference. Another ministerial appointment was made last week. Blessed with governments of politicians by politicians for politicians, we are apparently on course for a parliament of ministers!

The JVP has demanded that ministerial appointments be made scientifically whatever that means. The method that has been employed by the past few governments in appointing ministers is, however, not devoid of science, one may argue; it is Science of Stupid as Nat Geo calls it.

MP Pathirana may pose his question to the right minister in time to come and hopefully get a satisfactory answer. The problem of racketeers tarnishing the country’s image as a cinnamon exporter may also be solved if the government gets its act together. Likewise, the problem of people being burdened with a jumbo Cabinet and troubled by confusion also needs to be solved without further delay. Given the fragile unity of the present ‘coalition of coalitions’ which goes as a national government, it may not be possible for the Cabinet to be downsized within the next few years or so. People will have to suffer the fools gladly or otherwise. It’s case of Hobson’s choice for them. But, a constitutional amendment is called for to stop crossovers so as to prevent, at least with effect from the election of next Parliament, the greedy from distorting the will of the people and holding governments to ransom through defections.

Cabinets, like cinnamon and tea, must be free from refuse if the country’s image is not to be tarnished internationally.