By Mahesh Senanayake –

Mahesh Senanayake

In the wake of the Easter Sunday attack in the country, while We see solidarity amongst all Sri Lankans irrespective of their religious following or race, it is saddening to see the political expediency taking center stage. Usual blame game, glorification of certain individuals and claims that a certain catastrophe could have been prevented had the claimant or his party was in power are nothing new to the people of a nation that experienced a three and half decade long civil war with a deadliest terrorist outfit. However, nearly a decade after the end of the war; a period in which the country has achieved far reaching democratic and constitutional goals such as formulation of the 19^th amendments to the constitution, right to information, laws governing human rights, what We have not seen yet is the improvement of standards of politicians, their credos and their parties, for that matter, at least most of them are lagging behind.

A sorrowful nation baffled with the shocking terrorist attack was only left to ponder over how such a barbarian attack could have been contrived by a fraction of terrorists without being tracked down  by the police or security forces. In the aftermath of the devastating incident, what was emerged that no adequate action was taken despite alerts of an impending attack has disappointed the whole nation who rely on the powers that be to ensure national security. From circulation of a memo warning of an impending attack to statements made by the politicians and state officials stand to rub salt on the wound. Usual Political blame game by the political protagonists scoring marks for their next election campaign is omnipresent, even though they try their best to hide the fact. This is a trend that people are fed up with. Avoiding efforts to find solutions and claiming that the incident could have been averted had they been in power are  hackneyed in the national context and people will use their own balance score cards to identify these politicians who strive to plant their unsubstantial politically motivated notions amongst the people. The lack of coherent efforts to formulate national policies that can sustain for decades by the respective governments and opposition parties is not lost on any one including politicians, whereas they do not appear to engage in a national discourse fearing the best would happen in their absence in power. What we have been seeing since the Sunday incident is quite reminiscent of the past where the politicians of both sides vociferously blamed each other. At a period wherein most of the Sri Lankan voters are becoming much rationale and  juxtapose every political twist, damning factor is the misleading deeds by the politicians deceiving the masses on nationalistic approaches. Pointing finger at the president and the premier by the opposition in this context is no phenomena and at the same time leaving a subject to be nurtured for political expediency is the sole responsibility of the government. Instead of finger pointing, what people want at this juncture is  immediate solutions to ensure  safety in their day to day lives , apprehending the culprits  and holding any politicians or state officials responsible for inability to take preventive steps despite early warnings which is a serious  dereliction  of duty. As revealed by relevant persons, the absence of coordinated initiatives by the state intelligence arms is quite disturbing and the government will have to fast track in bridging the gaps .

As a country which was engulfed in a terrorists war for more than three decades, Sri Lankan people are aware of the distressing results of  LTTE terrorists activities that claimed scores of lives and ruined at least three generations. Well- orchestrated efforts by the then government, three forces and the police brought to an end to the war and all Sri Lankans singularly applauded the effort and placed highest trust in national security as the country had groomed one of the cleverest armies in the world. What is now left for the nation is not only to absorb  the deep sorrows but to persuade the politicians to behave  in the best interest of the country. Such persuasion is no easy task. It can only be carried out by the people themselves where they start rejection of politicians who are opportunists and turn every incident to their advantage. As said  above, it is the right time to use our own balance score card to rank the best ones who can fulfill the aspirations of a larger nation than a fraction of political disciples. Results of such ranking can be expressed using the best weapon we possess which is called the “vote “