Anura scores own goal, but succeeds in netting the corrupt

On this score one cannot find fault with the present administration. Already a former minister is behind bars –for 20 long years!

Not so long ago, when comrade Anura Kumara Dissanayake was an ordinary MP in the last parliament before presidential elections were held. At that time he breathed fire and brimstone regarding clauses in the International Monetary Fund agreement signed by then President Wickremesinghe. MP Anura then claimed that the IMF agreement unfairly targeted the poor.

Prior to his change from comrade to His Excellency, his party -the JVP- was also in the forefront of condemning Israel’s continuing genocidal attacks on the Palestinian people. The JVP even organised international protests in West European countries condemning Israel. In our own country his party supporters were the most vociferous among those condemning Israeli genocide in Palestine.

At that time perhaps, neither the president nor his party believed they would receive the huge victory they won at the polls. However, this is purely speculative. But the fact is that once ensconced in power, President Dissanayake has not as yet renegotiated the IMF agreement. Quite the opposite has happened.

 At his last meeting with the IMF delegation (15 June 2025), led by IMF Deputy Managing Director Ms. Gita Gopinath, President Dissanayake expressed his sincere appreciation to the IMF for its continued support in guiding Sri Lanka through its recent financial crisis. 

The poor need to suffer even more austerity, seems to be the President’s message. In keeping with this new thinking, the tariff on electricity was raised by 15%. This is at a time when the World Bank warned many Sri Lankans to continue to face significant hardship, with poverty, food insecurity, and malnutrition on the rise. The cost of living is rising, particularly in the second half of 2025, with a projected increase of 5-7%. 

As though this record was not bad enough President Dissanayake and his Cabinet of Ministers seem to have had a change of heart regarding their position on the genocidal attacks Israel is carrying out on Palestine. Around a month ago using the dreaded Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) government took into custody a young person who stuck a flyer on a bin in a particular super market condemning Israeli atrocities in Palestine. 

Yet public transport buses ply with huge Israeli flags on their backsides – but no arrests have been made so far. At the same time President Anura’s government provides armed military and police protection to illegal Israeli Chabad Houses in different parts of the country!

In practical terms Government has suddenly done a full U-turn given its actions on the ground. Yet at the recently-held Nakba commemoration Day (15 May) in Colombo, the Prime Minister herself and Ministers of the government condemned Israeli atrocities in Palestine.

It seems the president, his men and women have gotten themselves into a tangle –they’ve got their sums all wrong.  But in reality things are not as bad as they seem. The president and his party before the election promised to fight corruption and bring the corrupt to book.

On this score one cannot find fault with the present administration. Already a former minister is behind bars –for 20 long years!

A former Minister of Health, his family and officials have been arrested for importing sub-standard medicines into the country and enriching themselves, on profits gained off the ill-health they brought upon the country. 

The former Inspector General of Police has been charge-sheeted with 22 charges of allegations of misconduct and gross abuse of power of office.

Three former presidents and a number of past ministers are under investigation for involvement in a US$ 100 million cattle scam.  

Police brutality has been a long-running sore adversely affecting the system of justice in the country. Government is now cracking down on this menace. Just days ago the media reported our Courts had ordered two ranking police officers to personally pay million-rupee compensation to victims who were tortured by them. 

It appears the wheels of justice are grinding slowly but surely. Hopefully corruption and police brutality will become a thing of the past.

As of late Singaporean premier was wont to say, unless corruption is eradicated a country can never develop. This government has begun taking its first shaky steps to reach that goal.