Reducing CoL

A perennial accusation by the Opposition has been that the Government was ignoring the peoples’ welfare in the guise of fighting the war.

This has been the refrain down the years with all Governments since the beginning of the two and half decade old conflict. True, some regimes took advantage of the military campaign to heap heavy financial burdens on the populace whilst Ministers and Government functionaries made hay.

Reports were rife of how some Military Generals become multimillionaires overnight feeding on the war. There were also accusations of Governments deliberately dragging on the war to justify thrusting economic hardship of the masses which gave birth to the coinage “Yuddaya Thuvalayak karagena”.

A country waging war against one of the most ruthless terrorist outfits in the world would naturally be in a financial bind and calls for sacrifices by the people are only natural. The people on the other hand would welcome any sacrifices if they are confident these sacrifices are not in vain.

It is in this light that one should consider the measures taken by the present Government to offer some form of redress to the ordinary masses who have to endure the economic fallout of the current conflict.

It is the consensus of even the bitterest critic of President Mahinda Rajapaksa that he is the one leader so far who is fighting terrorism in all earnest. Unlike in the past when huge lulls were witnessed in the fighting mostly by design what we see today is a serious attempt to militarily defeat the LTTE.

A natural consequence is the rising military expenditure which entails sacrifices by the masses or what is euphemistically called a ‘tightening of belts’.

Any Government naturally will be placed in a dilemma of on the one hand having to allocate financial resources to fight terrorism while at the same time ensuring that money is available to feed its population while also continuing with subsidies and other welfare measures.

It is undeniable that every effort is being taken by President Rajapaksa to judiciously balance these two factors. Here the President is at an advantage in that he has the full backing of the Southern electorate to take on the LTTE while even undergoing day to day hardships.

But he is also not unmindful of the expectations placed in him by the common masses to alleviate their economic plight which means implementing the promises made at the polls. This the President has grasped as seen in his relentless efforts to find ways of redressing the plight of the poor reeling under the high cost of living.

The President’s concern is manifest by his appointment of a Committee to look into the Cost of Living issue and his frequent meetings with the Central Bank authorities to device ways to cushion the financial burden on the population.

That the President is earnest in his desire to ameliorate the hardships of the people is evident even by the small measure of reducing bus fares which have already been increased.

This was seen by the Transport Minister ordering the SLCTB to reduce bus fares in keeping with rate revision formula which was not adhered to by the private operators. According to Transport Minister Dullus Alahapperuma this was designed to benefit the village commuter.

There have been other instances where the Government has taken measures in this fashion to afford relief. Its move to slash the VAT on 10 essential items would no doubt afford much relief to the poorer sections.

Other relief measures too have been implemented through various Ministries under the most difficult financial circumstances to ensure that the ordinary masses are not overly burdened.

True, the Cost of Living has soared but this is not unique to this Government. On the contrary, President Rajapaksa cannot be accused of neglecting the masses on the economic front. The Opposition should on the other hand strive to cooperate with the Government to bring an end to the war, which would usher in economic prosperity to the nation.