• Suggestions for the 21st Amendment to the Constitution

On the cusp of celebrating my 49th birthday, I watch, with absolute pride, how the the youth of this land, as well as people from all walks of life, for whatever reasons, have gathered in “Gotagogama” (formally known as Galle Face Green) to peacefully protest against the local “royal” family. Whilst there are still a few absolute loyalists of this family – and I hope they will find a kind psychologist to disabuse them of these notions – it seems obvious that their voter base has eroded, along with fuel, cooking gas, food, and the ability to maintain a basic standard of living. Meanwhile, Parliament seems to be in deadlock, and our President as well as his brother, the Prime Minister, have appointed yet another Cabinet, while sending their own legal advisor to Washington D.C. to parley with the International Monetary Fund for bridging finance. India has stepped in to assist, but this is because they do not want the People’s Republic of China holding the keys to its back door. After all, strategically, Sri Lanka is the rear entrance to India, and having the Chinese in such proximity to their Southern border is inherently dangerous.  The wily former Prime Minister, even though widely credited for single-handedly destroying the grand old political party, seems to be up to his Machiavellian machinations behind the scenes, likely in the vain hope that he will be offered the Prime Ministerial post in the Interim Government. Maybe he deserves it? I cannot think of anyone else, at this present moment, who has more international support than the former Prime Minister. Amidst all these shenanigans, the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP)-led National People’s Power (NPP) has been making amazing inroads with the masses. However, I will personally never forget the JVP’s prior antics, making me suffer from acid reflux when I see them making headway with the population.  The main Parliamentary Opposition, the Samagi Jana Balawegeya (SJB) yesterday (21) presented its proposed 21st Amendment to the Constitution Bill to the Parliament. As a citizen, I have had enough of reading the manifestos of self-serving men and women who come around asking for our votes every five years, and then enjoy a grand life paid for by our funds, without being questioned. Enough is enough, so I have decided to put forth my own manifesto. Many will call me naïve for writing such a manifesto, but if a few more citizens do the same, the contagion will spread.  1 – Contesting to enter Parliament At present, entering Parliament is a very expensive affair. Aspiring MPs need to spend on promotions and “buy” votes when required. This is where the corruption begins. To win, they must spend money. To spend money, they must get money. To get money, they must promise a return on investment, which is again money.  Whilst this vicious circle continues, you and I are essentially being conned by those we call MPs, since they have sold their souls to the local businessmen to gather their funds – before they go to “represent” us, they have already compromised themselves.  As such, whilst we cannot stop all corruption, the people can insist on the following:

• Anyone wanting to be in Parliament must be a born Sri Lankan citizen. There is no recognition of dual citizens being allowed into Parliament
• Anyone contesting an election must have 15 years of working experience in any profession. Basically, this person must have worked in some way before asking for votes
• Candidates must be qualified with a degree or a globally accepted professional qualification, which means if you do not have a degree, you must have a CIM, CIMA, ACCA, or similar qualification
• Candidates must live in the particular area they are contesting for a minimum of 10 years by having a permanent residence. This will stop the larger political parties from “importing” cronies to represent us, since this person must live in the area. Also, when one lives in an area, they cannot avoid their constituents, since they will come home to question them
• Candidates must have a clean police record, where there cannot be any pending cases against such a person, and they cannot have been prosecuted by a court of law

2 – Limitations to being in Parliament As I have stated before, the biggest problem we have in this country is nepotism in politics. This began from Independence, as history shows us several instances of family members being chosen for leadership roles. Even today, the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) is undergoing a power struggle, where its leadership seems to be reserved for members of the Rajapaksa family and no-one else. Similarly, the leadership of the SJB or the United National Party (UNP) seems reserved for those with prominent family membership. No-one looks at the most suitable candidate. Therefore, I suggest a term limit of 10 years being imposed on anyone wanting to be in Parliament. This will stop anyone from creating a political legacy where they think their family has the “right” to represent a particular area forever. Also, 10 years is more than enough time for a particular candidate to do their job effectively and then retire. Another limitation that should be implemented is that no parliamentary seat can run within the same family without a break of 20 years. For example, should one Mr. Dissanayake represent Moratuwa, his progeny cannot contest for the same seat for another 20 years. Which means, should Mr. Dissanayake’s children want to represent Moratuwa, they need to wait 20 years, or four terms, during which someone else represents the area, before they can contest for the same seat. 3 – Benefits of being in Parliament  As per the current status quo, holding a parliamentary seat is apparently the start of untold, unexplained, untaxed, and unimaginable riches. The convention appears to be to parlay this seat into a portfolio, from where the gravy train seems to truly begin. This system encourages politicians to defect from one side to another, and leaves room for rich businessmen to “buy” political parties of their choice, with the taxpayer ultimately bearing the expense.  Therefore, the following benefits will be applicable for each MP:

• A monthly salary of Rs. 250,000, and 300 litres of petrol or diesel per month
• No pension after a term ends; once an MP leaves Parliament, we thank them for their service, and that is it
• Each MP is given a vehicle from government stores for use during their term of service
• If no vehicles are available, an SUV branded and manufactured in India will be purchased for each MP, for official use. This vehicle must be used for 10 years
• No duty-free permits for vehicles will be provided to any MP
• No MP can serve in the Cabinet or hold any ministerial post. The Parliament is one of three arms of Government, which is the Legislature. The role of this arm is to create and pass laws 
• No MP is entitled to any government accommodation or apartments in Colombo. They are entitled to stay in Army/Navy/Air Force accommodation during days of Parliamentary sessions on a paid basis, but must return to their constituency immediately when the session is concluded
• Each MP will be granted a monthly allowance of Rs. 750,000 during their tenure, to rent an office and hire some staff to assist them. Said allowance will cease upon them losing their seat
• No MP may employ any relatives and/or family members to work at their office using the government allowances. They must hire appropriately qualified, experienced, and capable non-related personnel
• It must be made illegal for any potential MP to promise or imply that they can provide any government job or free land for any person who volunteers for said person during the election
• Each MP must post online their bank statements whilst in office, including that of their spouse, children, siblings, and/or relatives
• Finally, if any MP has any pending cases before any court of law, or is taken to court during their tenure as an MP, or is investigated by the Police for any reason whatsoever, said person will immediately lose their seat and will be replaced by the second-highest vote winner from that area, irrespective of their party

4 – Separation of Cabinet and Parliament Being a “Minister” and holding a Cabinet portfolio is the main reason many politicians spend their time being a sycophant to some person or other. Why? Because this is where the money is! Look at the current Government. Few can be said to be qualified in any activity besides being a “yes man” to the Rajapaksa family. If we are to move forward as a country, the Cabinet of Ministers must comprise experienced and qualified candidates from the private and academic sectors. These individuals will run the country with the President or Prime Minister, but are responsible individually and collectively to the Parliament for their performance. Each of these “sector heads” must be chosen carefully and vetted by Parliament before appointment, and must account to a committee made of MPs, on a quarterly basis, for the performance of their sectors, as well as the expenses needed. After all, Parliament will hold the purse strings of the nation, and these individuals must come to Parliamentary Committees to ask for money and budget approval. These sector heads must have a minimum of a Master’s degree and/or be a Chief Executive Officer of a Public Limited Company (PLC) or a very large/successful company to be considered for service. Each of these sector heads will be paid a monthly salary of Rs. 2,500,000, but will not be entitled to bodyguards, duty-free allowances, pensions, or fancy vehicles.  Each of them will be provided with a vehicle from Government stores, or a suitable Japanese/Korean vehicle will be purchased for them with a government driver and unlimited fuel. These persons are free to use their own private vehicles, if they so wish, but no maintenance will be paid by the government for these. Each of them will be appointed for a period of 30 months (per term), with reviews conducted publicly every 10 months by a Parliament Committee. If the majority of this Parliament Committee feels that this person is not doing their job, said person will be asked to resign and return to the private/academic sector.   Part two of this article will be published next week… (The writer is a business development professional/trainer who has 25 years of experience in FMCG, advertising, global logistics, automotive, projects, and engineering solutions and has worked with global brands such as Mahindra, Volvo, Herman Miller, and UPS)     —-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------