{"id":55207,"date":"2017-09-16T18:00:11","date_gmt":"2017-09-16T22:00:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/?p=55207"},"modified":"2017-09-16T18:00:36","modified_gmt":"2017-09-16T22:00:36","slug":"an-exemplary-public-servant-like-lalith-weeratunga-becoming-the-fall-guy-in-the-sil-redda-affair-is-a-colossal-shakespearean-tragedy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/?p=55207","title":{"rendered":"Lalith Weeratunga Becoming the Fall Guy in the “Sil Redda” Affair is a Colossal Shakespearean tragedy."},"content":{"rendered":"

by Jolly Somasundram<\/strong><\/p>\n


\n“I have done some service to the State”.<\/em>
\n – Shakespeare: Othello<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Sept. 10 editorial in the Sunday Island titled “Lalith Weeratunga” is timely, reflective and balanced. It ironises on the predicament faced by an honest and efficient SLAS Officer Lalith Weeratunga, the former Secretary of President Rajapaksa, (a Secretary to the President is the number one public servant of Sri Lanka). The predicament was caused by a land mark judicial decision: Lalith was sentenced to three years rigorous imprisonment, fined significant sums by the Colombo High Court Judge. He was walked handcuffed to the Black Maria on his way to prison. Lalith was dealt with not for corruption but for carrying out a Presidential suggestion, to divert state funds to finance the President\u2019s election bid.<\/p>\n

His implementation of this illegal suggestion, violating sacred election laws, was a body blow to Democracy and a moral horror. The Nuremburg principles laid down that an illegal directive cannot be implemented. No claim could be justified on the basis that that an illegal directive was made by a superior authority. As far as known, the sentencing of Lalith is the first instance in independent Sri Lanka, where an official had been judicially indicted for misdiversion of state funds, to help an election contest to boot.<\/p>\n

Watch dog organisations went berserk with delight at the sentencing, claiming credit for the schadenfreude. Ranjith Keerthi Tennakoon, head of The Campaign for Free and Fair Elections (CaFFE,) preening with rock star allure, was euphoric. He expressed a groanworthy “heartfelt thank you” to Election Monitors, PAFFREL, CMEV, and TI, Ravi Waidyalankara, Thusith Mudalige(Anti-Corruption Secretariat), and Wasantha Samarasinghe of the JVP and others for continuously “pushing for justice”. Lilliputians, who would never have made it to the SLAS, brought down a giant and tied him head and foot within prison. The Sunday Island of September 10 had another view of Lalith. The same editorial went further, “Few, if any, would have taken pleasure at the High Court conviction of Lalith Weeratunge” it said.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Lalith was an enabler not a beneficiary, a catalyst who facilitated a relationship but was not himself changed by it. By his actions Lalith upheld another sacred principle of representative Democracy – that an official will never blame his Minister for a decision he carried out at the Minister\u2019s behest. Whistle blowing is not part of Democracy\u2019s vocabulary. At the sentencing, the political direction giver and beneficiary of Lalith\u2019s implementation, was nowhere to be seen. It was the unkindest absence of all. In the Black Maria ride to prison, did Lalith reflect, like Cardinal Wolsely placed in a similar predicament, “had I but served my God with half the zeal I served my King, He would not have in my age (and dire diabetic condition) left me naked before my enemies”?<\/p>\n

Lalith, a Shakespearan tragedy, is a classic fall guy, one who took it on the chin like a true SLAS officer, while beneficiaries of his largesse disowned him. In public management, the minister and Secretary are in an administrative husband and wife relationship. There is policy and information give and take which is privy to them, not recorded and, indeed, not recordable. Those who emphasise that all controversial directions made by the Minister should recorded are not living in the world of public administration. As much as in a spousal relationship, where the partners are legally prohibited from giving evidence against each other, there is an urgent need to impose a similar prohibition between the two top political and administrative players.<\/p>\n

I was an Additional Secretary (Policy) in the Ministry of Public Administration (1990) working under both Minister Festus Perera and Deputy Minister John Amaratunge. The newly created policy division was given responsibility for implementing the 10 1\/2 reports of the Wanasinghe recommendations on administrative reform. It was at this ministry that I first met Lalith, on his being appointed my senior assistant secretary. What an exceptional public official he turned out to be! Administrative reform was implemented with the guidance of PNM (Lumpi) Fernando, an honest but hard taskmaster, an iconic public servant and a cerebral public administration thinker. Those who worked – and survived – under Lumpi- were the best of the best.<\/p>\n

Remembering events which had taken place over quarter century ago, the policy division tried, among others to whittle down the bloated public service by offering accelerated early retirement (circular 44\/90). It introduced provincial and district recruitment which would reflect the ethnic proportions of these areas, a by-product being better ethnic reconciliation (circular 15\/90). But the most triumphant change lay in introducing recruitment to public service posts, solely by examination, thus precluding appointment by politicians. This daunting change required hectic bargaining with hesitant decision makers: many were the hours that the policy division spent in Parliament, persuading reluctant politicians – of all stripes – to forego their dearly held power to recruit public servants, some female appointments being made in resthouses!<\/p>\n

I left the ministry two years later to join the SLIDA, leaving Lalith with Lumpi in the ministry. Since SLIDA was a part of the ministry, it could be justifiably claimed that Festus Perera\u2019s period (1990- 1995) was the best period Sri Lanka ever enjoyed in public administration and no wonder, the ministry having officers like Lumpi and Lalith serving it. The ministry of public administration was created in 1972 with high expectations of it becoming the public service personnel department. Considerable progress was made in going towards this goal during Festus Perera\u2019s period.<\/p>\n

Lalith enjoyed rapid upward mobility under both political parties, holding prestigious posts, climaxing his career as Secretary to the President. In his career, there were no allegations of financial impropriety nor that he personally benefited from financial malfeasance. The press is not known to be effusive about public servants but about Lalith, the Sunday Island wrote that in the same editorial, “Lalith,a senior public servant known both for his efficiency and self-effacing ways, never threw his weight around, was courteous to all with whom he dealt with and was obviously loyal to his boss”.<\/p>\n

Much of the misunderstanding of public administration arises from its dual source of power. Politicians (elected public servants) are responsible to their electorates to which they have recourse, to renew their mandates. Public administrators (selected public servants) were to carry out their responsibilities being constitutionally mandated to work, “under the direction and control of the Minister”. The befuddlement of public servants is due to the existential despair of being unable to reconcile one with the other, thus being compelled to compromise. Like Shylock said of the Jews, this was the badge of public administration life. Each public servant would understand a paraphrased Hamlet soliloquy,<\/p>\n

“To succumb or not to succumb, that is the question.<\/p>\n

Whether, it is nobler in the SLAS, to face and suffer<\/p>\n

A quiver full of slings and arrows, shot by politicians,<\/p>\n

Accompanying a threat of an immediate despatch to the \u2018Pool\u2019,<\/p>\n

Or, take arms against this sea of politician induced troubles,<\/p>\n

And, by opposing, end them, or end oneself”.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

NGO\u2019s, celebrating Lalith\u2019s downfall as justice rendered, do not recognise that the empowered ones who gave the order are still roaming free, while those who implemented the order, have been incarcerated.<\/p>\n

The decision to sentence Lalith and determine the extent of his punishment was a judicial decision, taken after assaying the evidence and the laws which were breached. But Shakespeare also spoke of mercy.<\/p>\n

“The quality of mercy is not strained;<\/p>\n

It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven<\/p>\n

Upon the place beneath. It is twice blessed,<\/p>\n

It blesses him that gives and him that takes:<\/p>\n

It is mightiest in the mightiest; it becomes<\/p>\n

The throned Monarch better than the crown.<\/p>\n

His sceptre shows the force of temporal power,<\/p>\n

The attribute to awe and majesty.<\/p>\n

Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of Kings;<\/p>\n

But mercy is above this sceptered sway.<\/p>\n

It is enthroned in the hearts of Kings.<\/p>\n

It is an attribute to God himself.<\/p>\n

And earthly power doth show like its God\u2019s,<\/p>\n

When mercy sensors justice”.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Granted the enormous contribution made to the State, Lalith, surely deserves mercy. But before mercy is extended, Lalith should exhibit genuine contrition and remorse for his actions in debauching Democracy. Evidence of remorse should include a full and unreserved public apology to the People.<\/p>\n

If Shakespeare had been living, using the raw material of this episode, he would have written a cracking play on public administration, which could even have surpassed his masterpiece, Coriolanus.<\/p>\n

Courtesy:Sunday Island<\/em><\/p>\n

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by Jolly Somasundram “I have done some service to the State”. – Shakespeare: Othello The Sept. 10 editorial in the Sunday Island titled “Lalith Weeratunga” is timely, reflective and balanced. It ironises on the predicament faced by an honest and efficient SLAS Officer Lalith Weeratunga, the former Secretary of President Rajapaksa, (a Secretary to the …<\/p>\n

Continue reading ‘Lalith Weeratunga Becoming the Fall Guy in the “Sil Redda” Affair is a Colossal Shakespearean tragedy.’ »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[12],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55207"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=55207"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55207\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":55209,"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55207\/revisions\/55209"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=55207"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=55207"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=55207"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}