A wise move
05 December 2016
The decision by the government to introduce measures to prevent the politicisation of public enterprises would indeed be welcomed by all right thinking people of this country. Today, the public have become mere bystanders while state enterprises that are maintained by the tax payer are run to the ground through waste, corruption and inefficiency, chiefly due to politicisation.
Besides, some state enterprises have also become liabilities and continue to be subsidized by the government at the expense of other more important development projects. Hence, it is time that a complete reassessment is made on how our public enterprises could be run, without these continuing to be a burden on the public. Depoliticising the public service therefore is the first step towards achieving this end.
According to Public Enterprise Deputy Minister Eran Wickremaratne, an Act of Parliament will be brought in next year to depoliticise all state enterprises - in itself an admission that our public sector is still heavily politicised. He said, with the introduction of the Act, these institutions would be able to work independently.
Speaking during the committee stage debate of Budget 2017, when his ministry’s Financial Heads were taking up for discussion, Wickremaratne said there were over 55 loss making state enterprises during the past 10 years, with the losses exceeding Rs. 650 billion.
This is criminal indeed, for which no one has been held accountable up to date. Hence the proposed Act should contain provisions to make those at the helm of public sector enterprises accountable, for the acts of commission or omission, on their part, that drove state enterprises to incur such astronomical losses. That is, if the rationale of depoliticisation is to eliminate losses and turn around loss making ventures.
Improving efficiency should go hand in hand with depoliticisation. Decisions have to be rational, made with sound economic sense, and not politically based, if losses in state enterprises are to be minimised. There should be no room for the kind of mind boggling profligacy that was witnessed at SriLankan.
Politcisation has been the bane of the public sector of this country and all governments since Independence are guilty in this regard. It goes without saying that corruption goes hand in hand with politicisation and the country has had to pay a very heavy price in economic terms, as a result.
Over the years, most state bodies had been driving themselves into bottomless pits due to corruption, with the political appointees manning important positions in these state bodies making hay, knowing that they can getaway with it. It is not clear what form the Act to depoliticise the public sector will take, but it is essential that all vestiges of politicisation, including political interference in the running of the state enterprises, be dealt with. The Act should also provide for stringent measures to deal with corruption, that has been eating into the vital of these state enterprises over the years. It has been the practise for government ministers to get involved in all the crooked deals involving state sector enterprises coming under their purview.
Tenders are being manipulated so that politicians and their lackeys in these sector enterprises could line their pockets. This aspect should also be covered by the Act. The Act should also include provisions to keep out politicians in the running of the day-to-day affairs of these state enterprises. Recruitment should be based purely on merit, and ideally, political appointments should be made taboo. The country witnessed how state bodies like the Colombo port, the Petroleum Corporation, the CEB, the SLTB, SriLankan etc. were politicised under all governments and the consequences that visited these institutions. The latter was used as the private property of the Rajapaksas, with recruitments done by the members of the former first family. Whatever happened to the Weliamuna report that detailed the extravagances and scandals surrounding SriLankan? The government should act, to not only name and shame those involved in running the national carrier to the ground, but also to recover, at least part of astronomical losses, suffered through the systematic looting of this vital state asset, from all those responsible.
The Act should also provide the means to improve efficiency in state enterprises. This is because, down the years, there have been a host of square pegs in round holes at the helm of affairs in important state bodies, with dire consequences. The Minister’s emphasis on paying special attention to cut down losses in public sector enterprises is also welcome. It is better to try and turn around things in these state bodies first, before plunging headlong into privatisation. Certain unpopular measures need to be taken to contain losses in state bodies. One of the main reasons contributing to the huge losses suffered by some state enterprises is over-staffing. Here too politicians should squarely take the blame.
Being a banker, Wickremaratne no doubt would be the ideal person to work out what ails some of our state sector enterprises and offer solutions to contain the haemorrhage, if only he is given a free hand.
Besides, some state enterprises have also become liabilities and continue to be subsidized by the government at the expense of other more important development projects. Hence, it is time that a complete reassessment is made on how our public enterprises could be run, without these continuing to be a burden on the public. Depoliticising the public service therefore is the first step towards achieving this end.
According to Public Enterprise Deputy Minister Eran Wickremaratne, an Act of Parliament will be brought in next year to depoliticise all state enterprises - in itself an admission that our public sector is still heavily politicised. He said, with the introduction of the Act, these institutions would be able to work independently.
Speaking during the committee stage debate of Budget 2017, when his ministry’s Financial Heads were taking up for discussion, Wickremaratne said there were over 55 loss making state enterprises during the past 10 years, with the losses exceeding Rs. 650 billion.
This is criminal indeed, for which no one has been held accountable up to date. Hence the proposed Act should contain provisions to make those at the helm of public sector enterprises accountable, for the acts of commission or omission, on their part, that drove state enterprises to incur such astronomical losses. That is, if the rationale of depoliticisation is to eliminate losses and turn around loss making ventures.
Improving efficiency should go hand in hand with depoliticisation. Decisions have to be rational, made with sound economic sense, and not politically based, if losses in state enterprises are to be minimised. There should be no room for the kind of mind boggling profligacy that was witnessed at SriLankan.
Politcisation has been the bane of the public sector of this country and all governments since Independence are guilty in this regard. It goes without saying that corruption goes hand in hand with politicisation and the country has had to pay a very heavy price in economic terms, as a result.
Over the years, most state bodies had been driving themselves into bottomless pits due to corruption, with the political appointees manning important positions in these state bodies making hay, knowing that they can getaway with it. It is not clear what form the Act to depoliticise the public sector will take, but it is essential that all vestiges of politicisation, including political interference in the running of the state enterprises, be dealt with. The Act should also provide for stringent measures to deal with corruption, that has been eating into the vital of these state enterprises over the years. It has been the practise for government ministers to get involved in all the crooked deals involving state sector enterprises coming under their purview.
Tenders are being manipulated so that politicians and their lackeys in these sector enterprises could line their pockets. This aspect should also be covered by the Act. The Act should also include provisions to keep out politicians in the running of the day-to-day affairs of these state enterprises. Recruitment should be based purely on merit, and ideally, political appointments should be made taboo. The country witnessed how state bodies like the Colombo port, the Petroleum Corporation, the CEB, the SLTB, SriLankan etc. were politicised under all governments and the consequences that visited these institutions. The latter was used as the private property of the Rajapaksas, with recruitments done by the members of the former first family. Whatever happened to the Weliamuna report that detailed the extravagances and scandals surrounding SriLankan? The government should act, to not only name and shame those involved in running the national carrier to the ground, but also to recover, at least part of astronomical losses, suffered through the systematic looting of this vital state asset, from all those responsible.
The Act should also provide the means to improve efficiency in state enterprises. This is because, down the years, there have been a host of square pegs in round holes at the helm of affairs in important state bodies, with dire consequences. The Minister’s emphasis on paying special attention to cut down losses in public sector enterprises is also welcome. It is better to try and turn around things in these state bodies first, before plunging headlong into privatisation. Certain unpopular measures need to be taken to contain losses in state bodies. One of the main reasons contributing to the huge losses suffered by some state enterprises is over-staffing. Here too politicians should squarely take the blame.
Being a banker, Wickremaratne no doubt would be the ideal person to work out what ails some of our state sector enterprises and offer solutions to contain the haemorrhage, if only he is given a free hand.
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