• Scientist and public policy advocate Rohan Pethiyagoda on South Asia’s tallest structure

The Lotus Tower in Colombo opened its doors recently to the public, with a colossal extravaganza of lights and firecrackers. The country, while being in the throes of an economic crisis and a severe foreign exchange shortage, is not quite able to uptake any of the expenditure related to the tower, which adds no value to the infrastructure. However, in true island style, Sri Lanka just went ahead with not just constructing a white elephant the country can ill afford, but is grappling with hefty debt as a result. As is symptomatic of our island mentality, the public has been rushing in droves to buy tickets and check out the latest spectacle that articulates the vanity of misguided, corrupt leaders. They remain ignorant or just too removed from reality of the repeated consequences of leaders who spend public money, (technically citizen’s money) to feed egocentric habits. This “Tower of Vanity” has cost Sri Lanka a phenomenal $ 165.5 million – that’s $ 105 million for construction, $ 4.5 million for rehousing/relocating families who used to live on that land, and $ 56 million for compensation. Doing the math, the tower will have to rake in millions of US dollars per year just to break even. Award-winning scientist, conservationist, taxonomist and, most importantly, public policy advocate – essentially someone who thinks things through with great clarity – Rohan Pethiyagoda is a regular guest on Kaleidoscope with The Pethiyagoda Pages. Here he joins Kaleidoscope with some candid comments about the tower. Following are excerpts:    Now that the Lotus Tower is up and running, is there any way we can reimburse the cost?   It is never going to pay us back; it’s never going to break even. Even if you target a rate of return of 7%, which is the rate of interest Sri Lanka is paying China for the loan taken to build this, the tower will have to net about Rs. 12 million a day just to break even. That’s never going to happen. But look at the bright side. There’s much to be said of the design of the structure. The onion-shaped dome is reminiscent of early Islamic architecture and what better apology could be offered to the Muslims of Sri Lanka for the appalling treatment they received these past three years? Then, there’s the tower’s bizarre shape. That’s a positive as well, because how better could we remember our political leaders than with Asia’s largest phallic symbol? One couldn’t make this up even if you tried.   So we are stuck, paying back a debt we can’t afford, and something that aesthetically leaves much to be desired?   We definitely can’t assume this will be the last time politicians try to cheat the public by building monuments to their own legacies, but it won’t happen easily in the future. One of the bright sides about bankruptcy is that no one will lend us money for wasteful projects like this, at least not for the next several decades. The Chinese will never, nor anyone else for that matter, lend us money because they know we can never pay them back.   When it comes to infrastructure development or vanity legacies, it seems like the rules, especially in the procurement framework, have been designed and doctored to allow it to happen. This goes against public trust and public interest. What happens to checks and balances?   The checks and balances in Government never prevent bad things from happening. The Government can’t be policed to that extent. For example, right now the Government is negotiating with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and committing to terms and conditions no one is or will be aware of until the deal is done and dusted. By then, it’s too late to do anything about it. It’s the same with development projects. Very often the project goes ahead and we only complain later because, while it’s happening, it is shrouded in secrecy. There’s not really very much we can do, except that at some point we must have the death penalty for corruption; if you hang a few, these crimes lessen.   Given that the money used to pay the debt is public money, isn’t there an onus on the Government to be more transparent and accountable?   Of course there is, and we have the mechanisms to ensure transparency. But the Government and administrative fabric is fundamentally corrupt from top to bottom. At the top, there are kleptocratic politicians who are probably the worst politicians money can buy – and they’re literally bought. Down the ladder, the bureaucracy habitually believes that money can be made. Everyone takes their share at some point. The Bribery Commission is worthless and should be shut down. There is rampant bribery and corruption, but there’s no policing. In the recent case where British authorities fined Airbus several billion pounds for corruption, one of those involved was an employee of SriLankan Airlines, who was caught red-handed. All evidence was given to the Sri Lankan Government, but no one is behind bars to date. So our institutions are fundamentally corrupt and worthless. When there are people opposed to a democratic framework, then constitutions, laws, and commissions are of no value. We need a change from top to bottom, which is what the young people are asking for.   What about the argument that we needed this tower to develop/improve our infrastructure overall and telecommunication in particular?   That’s nonsense. If you need a tall tower for telecommunication, it won’t be built in the heart of the city. These towers were fashionable at a time when there were no other tall buildings that could be used for the purpose and, even then, don’t forget another aspect of transparency, which is radiation safety, which no one has mentioned. The World Health Organisation (WHO) says electromagnetic radiation from these antennae is potentially a carcinogen; it’s on Class 2 of the WHO list of carcinogens, similar to glyphosate, which had everyone alarmed. But we haven’t seen a radiation risk assessment for the tower or what radiation-proofing architecture was used in construction, and we are getting people to pay Rs. 500 to go into that building to get their brains fried.   We have this ‘Tower of Vanity’ now and there’s nothing we can do about it. Any suggestions on how we can get some rate of return?   There is none. It just has to be written off – like the Mattala Airport or the Hambantota Port – and just forgotten about. As a nation, we just have to suck it up as the cost of tolerance of a people of a kleptocratic Government. That’s the price citizens will pay and are paying even today.   With no feasibility studies carried and probably a lack of standards as well, is there a way to prevent this type of massive wastage in the future?   I don’t think you can. If Sri Lanka had strong institutions – the Judiciary, Police, the AG’s Department, etc. – none of this would have seen the light of day. But at some stage these institutions have been tainted. Sri Lanka is not alone in this predicament. There’s probably a hundred other countries with similar political-economic status which can’t be changed overnight. I don’t think we should hold out for institutional change as long as politicians are not held to account by their own citizens. With the repression of dissent being violently undertaken and prosecuted by the Government, we will see even less of that voice. Unless freedom can be established, there’s really not much hope!   (Savithri Rodrigo is the host, director, and co-producer of weekly digital programme ‘Kaleidoscope with Savithri Rodrigo,’ which can be viewed on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. She has over three decades of experience in print, electronic, and social media.)