By W. Vishnu Gupta –

W. Vishnu Gupta

All crafty politicians believe they are the grandmasters of deceiving voters for ever, in the case of Sri Lankan politicians, the proof is in the pudding as this abhorrent conviction can be proven beyond any doubt. Their accomplishments during last seven decades speak volumes – A failed bankrupt state, where sovereignty is threatened, national assets are sold to foreigners, state sponsored slave markets to cater to the foreign bidders, dysfunctional Education system, Healthcare system in its death throes, paralyzed Judiciary system, starvation, desperation and misery in every town and village – Since 1940s the political leaders notably Bandaranaikes , Jayewardene, Rajapaksas and the current president have proven that Sri Lankans are so gullible, and they will be able get away from all anti-democratic and illegal transactions that undermine the sovereignty of the country. In fact, the voters must be truly naïve, otherwise why would they always opted to elect a bunch of ruffians as parliamentarians to support the above leaders every time when an election is held in Sri Lanka. Or else it is safer to assume that every voter, rich or poor, literate, or illiterate is corrupt without any exception. It is somewhat baffling how 6.9 million voters elected a fellow good for nothing as the president in 2019. What is most bizarre is that he was allowed to choose an unelected, a nationally rejected politician as his successor. It was a clear constitutional coup d’état based on the loopholes and ambiguities implanted by the very same clique and their gurus in the nation’s constitution. Everyone in the current legislature is a beneficiary of this flawed constitution, hence they would not dare to talk about constitutional coup d’état of 2022. Sri Lanka brags to rest of the world about the virtues of democracy but isn’t it strange an unelected person without a single elected parliamentarian of his own political party is the president of the country and similarly an unelected person handpicked by the very same man who deceived 6.9 million voters seem to be one of the kingpins making devious plans to eliminate the Sri Lankan Rupee. He has initiated a scheme to adopt Indian Rupee for transactions between the two countries first under the pretext of increasing more Indian travellers coming to Sri Lanka. 

Consequently, the ordinary citizens will not be able to escape the misery and despair in any foreseeable future under the policies of the current regime occupying the legislature and the presidency with the protection of a flawed constitution. These men and women have already set their target to make the country free of poverty after the end of their life span. Most likely none of these undesirables in the parliament will be living until 2048, but judging by their record of achievements and political trend of last seven decades, they will surely make Sri Lanka the next federal state of India before 2048, their equally corrupt children and grandchildren of Sinhala, Tamil and Muslim origins must be dreaming of sitting in the Lokh Sabah in New Delhi either as the representatives of the 29^th state or the 9^th union territory of India. So why not hurry and build the bridge connecting India and Sri Lanka sooner enabling them to cross Palk Strait in the comfort of their luxury vehicles. The above scenario is not bizarre or far-fetched specially when every Sri Lankan politician appears to have been afflicted with HERO SYNDROME. 

The first political duo known to have afflicted with Hero syndrome belongs to the Cinnamon Garden elite club and according to the historians, their (SWRDB and JRJ) family roots can be traced back to Kerala, India very easily. Both entered Sri Lankan (Ceylon) politics prior to 1948 and most likely, they may have dreamt of making Sri Lanka a federal state of India either by hook or by crook. The precarious nature of the present political configuration and unelected man occupying presidency of the country did not happen inadvertently, it is the culmination of the political scheming adopted by these two men based on “by any means necessary.” Hence, it appears, the constitution was purposely written as a flawed document with full of ambiguities to facilitate unelected men and women to enter the parliament and overpower the sovereignty that belongs to the people of Sri Lanka. 

Hero syndrome is a psychological disorder, sometimes known as savior complex and it cannot be clinically proven or treated. The term “Hero Syndrome” began to surface in the early 1980’s where a Los Angeles police officer planted a fake bomb near a bus parked in the airport during the summer Olympics. Subsequently, the very same officer, located the explosive device and diffused it to become a hero. At least this American was conscientious enough not to harm the innocent people and chose to plant a fake bomb. In contrast, Sri Lankan politicians are alleged to have deceived and massacred many innocent citizens to become “Heroes” and fulfill their political ambitions. The fake participants of “Aragalaya”, who slept in the leading hotels, fed with Biriyani, Savouries, Cakes, and Ice cream must have been the work of those nefarious elites afflicted with hero syndrome. Likewise, there are ample evidence in our recent history, posturing as the “good guy”, while punishing the “villains” how many narcissists have achieved their political objectives, people including infants are dyeing everyday in the country due to fault and corrupt practices of the government authorities, yet these narcissists believe they are upstanding and honourable.   

Furthermore judging by the performance, unceasing appetite for power to rule, and vile speeches made, it is obvious every MP and those who have occupied the presidency so far are afflicted with this psychological disorder known as hero syndrome or savior complex to some degree. They may not be innocent or sincere as they would like to portray in front of TV cameras or among innocent voters, because they have tendencies to seek heroism or recognition by creating desperate situations such as lack of food, energy crisis, gasoline shortages, and healthcare catastrophe . Then it is conceivable, their conduct may include unlawful acts such as promotion of ethnic strife, conflicts among religions, false alarm on national security, deliberate moves to create economic insecurity, money laundering, arson, or murder. 

Furthermore, those politicians with saviour complex believe no one else can save the country and hence they are unknowingly tied to fantasies of omnipotence. They demand recognition, grandeur, frequent trips to appear before reputed foreign leaders, unnecessary pomp, and pageant, and demonstrate typical characteristics of narcissists. The Sri Lankan politicians are a very rare oddity among all politicians put together globally. There are certain families plagued by hero syndrome completely, hence one would notice father, mother, siblings, nephews, nieces, cousins sitting in the legislature. There are MPs who make more visits to their Colombo family doctors or to Mount Elizabeth hospital in Singapore than their visits to the parliament, there are guys who attend the parliament to sleep or to enjoy the food in the cafeteria, there are semi-literate guys and gals attending the parliament to challenge the judiciary which is supposed to be independent, there are guys attending once in a while only to talk about rewriting the constitution, there are many who want cabinet portfolios irrespective of how they were elected either through governing party or the opposition, there are convicts, there are alleged murderers, rapist, and those who known to have squandered national assets, above all there are foreign citizens sitting as Sri Lankan legislators who openly defy the laws of the land. All these men and women of rare oddity and believe they are the only ones who can save the country and bring prosperity. They have been at “IT” for more than seven decades but have failed so far even to replace a single corroding roofing metal sheet from the national eyesore, an edifice known as Colombo Fort Railway Station which was opened in 1917 by the British.

These purported saviors of Sri Lanka are driven by the yearning to save others because their public statements indicate that no one else can and they are tied to fantasies of omnipotence. Unelected men and women who entered the legislature through loopholes inserted into the constitution are preoccupied in enjoying the illusions of supremacy. In their fantasyland there are no starving children, there are no patients needing life critical medicines, there are no mothers begging on the streets to feed the children, there are no cancer patients, there are no farmers or fishermen struggling to maintain their livelihood, there are no drug addicts, and there are no victims or no mothers who lost their children in the thirty-year war.

It is obvious and unfortunate, that Sri Lankan political elites are incapable of realizing the mistake of living in fantasy of omnipotence because they are blinded by ill gotten booty, hedonism, and hunger for power. However, the fault of alleged underhand deals with foreign organizations, governments and business tycoons cannot be hidden forever and sustain the insidious plans and schemes designed to retain power. The people by now understand that the narcissists habitually exploit underhand techniques such as promise of cabinet portfolios, large bribes, withdrawal, or delay of litigation against crime, tampering with evidence in criminal cases, or lucrative jobs in overseas missions to persuade others to agree to pieces of legislations that suppress the rights of people or paralyze judiciary,  very often utilizing sliver of the truth but layered it with distortions as the common approach. Then it must be said the current parliamentary, cabinet of ministers and presidency configuration is not tenable because it is built on the beliefs of those afflicted with hero syndrome and the culture of fantasyland of supremacy. They are flogging a dead horse in the hope a better day is surely a pipe dream.