Former Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe has called for a new political system.
Speaking during a meeting with young professionals at Sirikotha, Wickremesinghe said that alongside a system change a new political system must also be adopted.
He said that not just the question of the Executive Presidency but the entire representative system should be addressed.
How many political parties should be there, how should the voting system operate, do we follow the preferential voting mechanism or a new cost effective system of voting.
The former Prime Minister explained that the cost of the political establishment must also be addressed. How can we include more young people in politics.
He said that the Sri Lankan society must be brought forward to the 21st century with the system change. Our education and workforce must all adapt to the changes so that we can see a rise once again in the middle class in the country.
At the time of Independence Sri Lanka was on par with Japan, we have now fallen to the below Afghanistan. In 2048 the country will celebrate 100 years of Independence, by then we must have reached our potential.
To achieve this we must bring forth a new iron framework for a national policy. That will allow for Governments to change at times but the direction of the country will not. Countries such as India and Japan operate in this manner.
He also explained that the country has less than US $25 million dollars. While due to the tax cuts imposed by the Government the country lost Rs. 800 billion in revenue and is now facing a Rs. shortage.
“We are now unable to pay back our debt. So we must first enact a debt repayment structure”, he stated. Wickremesinghe added that the Government must cut out unnecessary expenditure and provide what relief then can to the masses, while explaining that the costs of items such a fuel will increase if the Government is to increase their revenue.
He warned that our banks were facing the possibility of collapse due to the outstanding loans taken by the Government. He said these issues can be resolved within a year or two at the most.
Once the immediate economic crisis is resolved, he said that we must look to the future. If that is to be done, then the entire process must be changed including the political process and the economic process. He explained that the political system in the country has lost the confidence of the people, and the protests have evolved from Go Home Gota, to Go Home Rajapaksa to Go Home all Politicians. This is due to Parliament failing to provide solutions to the crisis.
He said that steps are underway to begin the process of stabilizing the economy. The first step is to bring the control of public finances back under Parliament through the introduction of new Parliamentary committees. He said these committees can then engage with the youth and see their recommendations implemented.
Through doing this Wickremesinghe said that new leaders in the country will emerge alongside the new economy. He also said the political crisis regarding the President and Prime Minister, the constitutional amendments, the questions over the No Confidence Motions all will have to be addressed.
He said all these issues have to be resolved by everyone working together. They cannot be addressed by individuals, the public must also get involved. (Colombo Gazette)
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