The ultimate result of this General Election was never in doubt from the very outset. The Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna replicated the UPFA victory of the 2010 General Election to win by 145 seats, just five shy of the coveted two thirds majority at Wednesday’s General Election. However, this should increase rather close to 150 as a few parties that contested alone are supportive of the Government.
The war successfully waged against the Coronavirus pandemic by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa largely contributed to the victory of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP), according to most observers. It gave the people more than an inkling as to his ability to tackle other burning problems confronting the country and they gave the SLPP a thumping majority. It was an extension of the massive endorsement he received last November.
The people have extended this mandate to enable him to realise development targets, revive the economy and take the country forward in all other spheres during the next five years. In other words, the people voted for continuity. The voters were well aware of the consequences of electing an Opposition candidate to office, having burnt their fingers in 2015.
Now the country can move forward smoothly with the stabilizing influence of a President and a Prime Minister from the same party working in tandem.
But the Government cannot afford to rest on its laurels. There is much that needs to be done to rebuild the country and its battered economy in the wake of the Coronavirus. With a strong Government at the helm this will not be a difficult proposition. New laws and policy changes will necessarily have to be effected to pave the path for the Government. It is too early to say if the new Government will strive to create a two thirds Parliamentary majority for itself to facilitate this process. After all it is only a few Members short from achieving this target and anything is possible in politics. Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa has hinted as much.
The President too has openly declared his desire for a two thirds majority to effect certain changes to the 19th Amendment that is seen to be hampering the administration process. President Rajapaksa has pledged to appoint a strong Cabinet with competent persons to implement Government policies. This is as it should be given the ringing endorsement given to him by the voters. He owes it to them to run an efficient Government that would fulfill all their hopes and aspirations. Even the President, no doubt, would have been overwhelmed by the magnitude of the victory. The challenge for the new Government now will be to live up to expectations and deliver on the promises without delay. The voting public in this country are notoriously fickle, after all.
The new Government should not lose any time in getting down to business instead of wasting time on celebrations since the state of the country post-Coronavirus demands immediate attention. Refreshingly we see a good portion of new faces enter Parliament, among them scholars and professionals. Their services should be co-opted to the optimum. However, it is a pathetic indictment of our political culture and voter sentiment that only seven women have been elected to Parliament from both the SLPP and the SJB and we hope that the two parties will make some amends from the National List.
Hopefully, Members of the new Parliament would behave themselves and put an end to the deplorable scenes witnessed in the House in recent times. They owe it to the public who reposed their trust in them by sending them to Parliament to represent their interests. All members should strive to attend Parliament sittings regularly and justify the massive expenditure incurred by the tax payer on their behalf. What the country needs is a Parliament that will be accountable to the people who elected them in the first place.
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