Web of Life

At long last, food prices in the parliament canteen have been jacked up. Breakfast, which was available at a ridiculous price of Rs. 6 has now gone up to Rs. 60 and lunch from Rs. 15 to Rs. 150.

This is a salutary step albeit belated. But we hope that these price increases won’t be followed by a thumping hike in parliamentarians’ salaries and/or allowances.

Subsidised food for MPs, however, is not the only thing that has come under public criticism. It is the whole kit and caboodle of perks and privileges parliamentarians are enjoying at public expense, especially the tax-free vehicles on soft loans. Jumbo cabinets with a large number of deputies maintained at a tremendous cost to the state coffers have also been of grave concern to taxpayers languishing under a soaring cost of living.

Public resentment stems mainly from hubris and attendant callousness on the part of politicians, reflected in the way they conduct themselves in public. For example, there is a ceasefire on and the ruling party politicians sound sanguine about the country not reverting to war. But they retain armed guards, move about with escorts and keep personal weapons. (Recently we disclosed that many parliamentarians did not have licenses for their guns.)

If the situation in the country is so peaceful as it is made out to be, then why on earth can’t these politicians do without their weapons and armed guards and travel like other civilians?

How many of those parliamentarians who have opted to pay ‘more’ for their food, have declared their assets in compliance with the law? Only a few. It is this serious omission that has left room for corruption. It behoves those who were instrumental in getting the parliament food prices increased to give serious thought to asset declarations as well. Paying taxes should be considered more important than paying less for meals. None will mind these political worthies eating even five star food for free, if they abstain from bribery and corruption. That alone will make this country prosper.

The idea behind parliamentarians’ decision to pay more for canteen food may be to empathise with the people burdened with high commodity prices. But the people are saddled with other problems as well. They don’t live by bread alone. Public transport is in a horrible mess. Why can’t parliamentarians and provincial councillors under whose purview public conveyance comes, travel by bus or train at least on the days when Parliament meets so as to see for themselves the suffering the people are subjected to.

The Iegendary politician of the south the late Mr. W. Dahanayake used to do so. He travelled by train mingling with the common people as one of them. And if today’s politicians could emulate him, the transport sector will improve in no time. The officials concerned will be on their toes and private bus operators will behave themselves. How roads that remain in a state of disrepair for years in spite of appeals to the authorities, are repaired overnight before a political potentate’s visit is a case in point. (Once, it should be recalled, a government agent in the south had to remove his tie and coat and dig drains to help plumbers finish laying pipes in time for the late President Premadasa’s visit to avoid being dressed down coram populo. That is the way to shake awake the bureaucracy of this country. Whatever his shortcomings may have been, President Premadasa knew how to get his work done.) A set of rulers living in air-conditioned cocoons cannot solve the problems besetting the public. They ought to come out and live among the people eating and travelling as others do at least once in a way, if they are to call themselves ‘people’s representatives’.

Politicians must also stick to the regulations governing school admissions and send their children to schools close to their residences in the electorates they come from. There are about 4,000 sitting politicians at present in parliament, provincial councils and local government bodies and if they all do so, that will be the best antidote to the closure of rural school and surefire way to develop education in the provinces.

No attempt is—lest it should be mistaken—being made to pooh-pooh the decision to increase parliament food prices. It is laudable as was said earlier. But that alone is not enough. Politicians have to forego much more in the public interest.

Over to you, ‘the servants of the people’!