Picture Credit -The Ceylon Today
By Dr. Tilak S. Fernando
By Dr. Tilak S. Fernando
The precipitous petrol
crisis in the country emerged, on 3 November, from rumours by word of mouth,
while the line Minister and the Petroleum Development Resources Secretariat
kept mum until the delinquency hit a crisis level, and the exasperated
motorists started to go on a rampage. The Minister's request to the
public, 'not to panic' later, was akin to ‘shutting the
stable door after the horse had bolted’.
Inferior petrol
The first official
announcement indicated about a tanker full of inferior quality of petrol for
IOC, having to be rejected. The petrol queues gradually extended, and people
started to queue up for hours on end, when the Government announced to the
public ‘not to panic’, stating 80 per cent of stocks of petrol was available,
while the Indian Oil Company only controlled 20 per cent.
Fuel shortages take
place, from time to time the world over, and if a single shipment of inferior
quality of petrol was able to generate such a pandemonium in the country, it
simply boils down to the fact that the government does not have a cohesive
policy !
There are ample examples
of foreign governments coping up with such critical situations effectively. For
instance, the UK Government managed to print out and issue books of coupons,
through post offices, to the public, within 24 hours of a crisis involving a
tanker driver strike, constraining the issuance of petrol to 'x' number of
gallons per motorist.
Contrary to such
measures, in Sri Lanka, the Government was exposed as being hopelessly
inefficient, while the panicked, yet selfish motorists started to fill their
tanks up to the brim level and took extra supplies too in cans, until a ban was
imposed on issuing petrol into cans.
This, in turn, made the
desperate motorist, who got stuck on the road, ‘out of the frying pan into
the fire’ situation, having only two options left, that is, either to
abandon the vehicle on the road and walk home or push the vehicle all the way
to the nearest petrol station and join the miles long queue, without any
assurance that he would be able to get petrol once he approached the forecourt!
People have been queuing up in this manner, day after day, and to be advised
when they reached the forecourt that all supplies had exhausted.
Hide and Seek
The game of hide and
seek by the Government took place from 3 November to 8 November. The Government
apologized to the public on 7 November, indicating, “the crisis will
continue until the end of the week”. However, the latest indications are
that, this calamity is expected to end on 9 November, with the arrival of a
tanker from Dubai carrying 40,000 metric tons. The million-dollar question that
arises here is whether the citizens in this country have to depend all the time
on the President to intervene personally, to iron out every miniscule dispute
or problem?
There is no point in
appointing Cabinet sub-committees to investigate once the damage is done. It is
inevitable, therefore, for the citizenry to question, the purpose of having
countless number of ministers, as puppets, and the public to spend millions on
their upkeep out of direct and indirect taxes. By the same token, it is high
time to suggest to the Yahapalanaya to at least forget
the Yaha (moral) prefix from the Yahapalanaya and
to at least concentrate on some Palanaya (governance)
by eliminating the bickering and backbiting, by UNP and SLFP Ministers, with a
view to get the country on track by eradicating nepotism and corruption, which
are allowed to thrive shamelessly.
VIP Interference
During an interview on 7
November, with Malinda Seneviratne, writer and a political analyst, on News
Line TV1, revelation of a VIP's arrogant behaviour, at a Wariyapola petrol
station came to light. A VIP's vehicle had driven into the petrol station, with
back up vehicles, assisted by the police. The 'political thugs' who
were with the entourage, had thrown their weight about, ignoring the
exasperated people in the queue for hours, and ordered pump attendants to fill
the VIP's limousine, while the Police looked on. A true citizen, happened to be
Malinda's friend, had observed this unjust incident, while he was stuck in the
traffic jam. Immediately, he had stopped his car, walked straight up to
the 'political thugs', while the VIP was hiding behind tinted
glass shutters, and vociferously announced:
" What
you are doing here is completely wrong. You can kill me on the spot here, but
remember that the gun you are using is mine too, I pay for it, I pay for your
salary, so your master's pay and all his allowances. I pay for your boss's
vehicle and this petrol as well. I pay for your children's education, I do not
know who is inside the vehicle, but for the last 70 years, if others, like your
boss inside the car, had done what they were supposed to have done, then we
would not have queues for petrol like this today"!
Having said so, this
brave citizen had got into his car and driven off, while the shocked audience,
and the stunned and stupefied VIP and his goons, looked aghast. This is what
the President should try and put a stop to! Who needs an entourage of
vehicles, when there is no terrorist war anymore!
The type of citizenship,
required in achieving people's justifications, needs to be effective,
particularly in Sri Lanka's pathetic record. Therefore, masses need to develop
courage, have commitment, and possess an individual sense of responsibility
towards themselves, their families and broadly towards fellow citizens.
Ceylon Today - 2017 - Saturday Column