{"id":240536,"date":"2025-01-14T10:47:23","date_gmt":"2025-01-14T05:17:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/?p=240536"},"modified":"2025-01-24T10:53:13","modified_gmt":"2025-01-24T05:23:13","slug":"akd-rule-too-early-to-assess-too-late-for-regrets","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/akd-rule-too-early-to-assess-too-late-for-regrets\/","title":{"rendered":"AKD Rule: Too Early To Assess, Too Late For Regrets"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Vishwamithra<\/a> –<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cBut you can live in the most democratic country on earth, and if you’re lazy, obtuse or servile within yourself, you’re not free.\u201d <\/i>~ <\/i>Ignazio Silone, Bread and Wine\"\"<\/p>\n

Writing contemporary history is one of the most challenging undertakings; penning down a reportage as and when things start to unfold is relatively simple, yet when one begins to pass judgments and\u00a0 <\/span>offer\u00a0 <\/span>opinions about the same episodes of societal events might look easy; but making it authentic and intellectually sturdy is a near impossibility. Your writing becomes blurry and might tend to be more prejudicial and would be ridiculed by history itself. But mere novices may try their inexperienced pens and write utter rubbish and unworthy analyses that would not survive the ultimate tests of literary critique.<\/p>\n

Passing judgment on the AKD\/NPP rule just after it being there only three months is, in fact, absurd and ridiculous. Yet those politicians whose only function seems to be being opposed to whatever the principles and policies enacted by the new government is bearable. They would not have any other fundamental function in a working democracy. But those so-called social scientists and half-baked historians cannot be pardoned for the same such idiotic exercises. Let us all be more patient; let’s be more inclusive and unified in our evaluations of the current regime. If such a collective and impassioned posture is assumed, maybe, we ourselves\u00a0 <\/span>could be judged impartially and in more passionate style by those who really matter in passing sociopolitical verdicts: the masses.<\/p>\n

However, what has become most conspicuous in the new regime is AKD’s predominance in the governing machinery. Whether it’s, as part and parcel of ‘Executive Presidency’, an essential constitutional feature in our system of governance is a factor one has to apply in measuring success and or failure of the regime. But one cannot ignore the overwhelming dominance by President Dissanayake in each and every step and half-step the government has been taking. The rest of the government apparatus is empty. Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya who has been an omnipresent figure among the NPP leadership circles prior to the two elections, Presidential and Parliamentary, seems to have taken a back-stage seat.<\/p>\n

Whichever way one looks, if the most prominent leaders of the NPP, such as Harini, Vijitha Herath, Sunil Handunheththi, Wasantha Samarasinghe, Bimal Ratnayake and Lal Kantha have become absent in\u00a0 <\/span>pronunciation of government policies, it’s not going to be profitable in the future for more complicated crisis-situations the government would eventually and inevitably face. The people must see other faces who could be taken into their trust; they must see the second-tier leaders of the government, Ministers led by the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister. The more familiar they become with the masses, more palatable even the most bitter pills the government might want to offer the masses to swallow one day.<\/p>\n

That assessment can be made without any prejudice to future ventures of the government. Such an Assessment is essentially necessary and would be timely because it is merely on the style and tone of the machinery rather than on the substance and its consequences in time to come. I would avail myself of pardonable undertaking of writing a judgmental issue as was described in the preceding sentence.<\/p>\n

For those who eagerly awaited a system change<\/i>, it may be a thoroughly painful experience so far. In the same vein, system change<\/i> is not one that could be instituted overnight in the wake of an election in a democracy. Replacing a corrupt and dishonest regime by overthrowing it by violent means such as an armed revolution could be more straightforward and facile. In such a context, the incoming regime would not be bound by any existing laws and regulations. Upholding democracy and the rule of law as the fundamental frame of governance and curing and rejuvenating an ailing economy has to be formulated, legislated and executed within the same accepted framework. The bureaucracy and the official tiers of the governing machinery are being manned by the same men and women.<\/p>\n

Replacing the bureaucratic machinery overnight was possible but AKD and the NPP leadership opted otherwise. What suffered at the end of the process of the execution of this option is perceived inefficiency of the government. The politicians may want to wait; they know the realities of slow-moving cogs in the wheels of government, but the masses do not see it that way. They are inherently impatient; their waiting had been long and painstaking. If the rulers cannot offer tangible results within a reasonable period of time, the masses would not only be dissatisfied, they might be tempted by the opposition to take alternative means to achieve change<\/i>. If such a misfortune should occur, the NPP government might be taken aback. But to the relief of the government, that ‘Opposition’\u00a0 <\/span>cannot be credited with such political skills to drive a mass of people to the streets as we witnessed during the Aragalaya-22<\/i> days.<\/p>\n

The political skills or lack thereof and socioeconomic factors are not favoring such an Opposition. Sajith Premadasa, the leader of the Opposition is now alleged to be engaged in discussions with his mentor cum destroyer, both in one, to revive the old United National Party (UNP). Such futile conversations would not deceive the masses anymore. The train has left that station a long time ago. One cannot kill a dead entity. The old UNP is dead, never to rise again. In its place is the Samagi Jana Balavegaya (SJB). But owing to it being labeled as part of the old system of failed governance coupled with the mass appeal for fresh faces and fresher ideas and ideals, rise of the SJB to the seat of power is at least a generation away from now. When one concludes that it’s too early to assess the performance of the new government, one wonders whether it’s too late for any regrets on the part of all stakeholders of this societal change that is taking place before our very eyes.<\/p>\n

Regrets are many indeed; but as long as those regrets are dwelling within the confines of the governing party and its leaders, the ripple effects of those regrets will not be felt by the broad masses. Nevertheless, one main regret that might be lingering in the minds of the people is the pace at which the accountability of the wrong-doers of the previous regimes is moving. But the people must also realize that, unlike the respective regimes of the Rajapaksas and Wickremasinghes, taking the (mal)practitioners of the previous governments into account should be conducted in accordance with the law of the land. Any deviation from the existing laws would again would be a grosser malpractice of political power.<\/p>\n

Any and all political power, the NPP must realize, flows from the people. The mandate they received at the parliamentary elections is not a blank check. On the contrary, that mandate gives them authority and powers to do the right thing; not to engage in the same abuse of political power as did the Rajapaksas and the Wickremasinghes. The regret the people are experiencing now could be temporary but should not be exploited by the government as a long-term reconciliation with the government’s lethargic approach to resolving the issues confronting the country.<\/p>\n

We all want this government to succeed; any failure cannot be tolerated and the people are not yet ready to resign themselves to a second rate performance. That is precisely why the people seem to be still enjoying a period of a honeymoon. But reading that temporary joy as a long-lasting detente with the ruling regime could one day come to bite AKD and the NPP government. That is why it is of paramount significance that the the government must keep the regrets as few as possible and assessments as favorable as they could be.<\/p>\n

*The writer can me reached at vishwamithra1984@gmail.com<\/span><\/em><\/strong><\/span> \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

[…]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":29,"featured_media":239359,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,2186,46,8,2375],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-240536","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-colombotelegraph","category-featured-news","category-constitutional-reforms","category-editorial","category-stories"],"yoast_head":"\nAKD Rule: Too Early To Assess, Too Late For Regrets - Colombo Telegraph<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/akd-rule-too-early-to-assess-too-late-for-regrets\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"AKD Rule: Too Early To Assess, Too Late For Regrets - Colombo Telegraph\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"[…]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/akd-rule-too-early-to-assess-too-late-for-regrets\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Colombo Telegraph\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-01-14T05:17:23+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-01-24T05:23:13+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Anura-Kumara-Dissanayake-pic-AKD-FB.jpeg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"900\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"686\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Vishwamithra\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Vishwamithra\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/akd-rule-too-early-to-assess-too-late-for-regrets\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/akd-rule-too-early-to-assess-too-late-for-regrets\/\",\"name\":\"AKD Rule: Too Early To Assess, Too Late For Regrets - Colombo Telegraph\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/akd-rule-too-early-to-assess-too-late-for-regrets\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/akd-rule-too-early-to-assess-too-late-for-regrets\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Anura-Kumara-Dissanayake-pic-AKD-FB.jpeg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-01-14T05:17:23+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-01-24T05:23:13+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/#\/schema\/person\/ca4aa88b49282c1bbb2303616a55ed1b\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/akd-rule-too-early-to-assess-too-late-for-regrets\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/akd-rule-too-early-to-assess-too-late-for-regrets\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/akd-rule-too-early-to-assess-too-late-for-regrets\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Anura-Kumara-Dissanayake-pic-AKD-FB.jpeg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Anura-Kumara-Dissanayake-pic-AKD-FB.jpeg\",\"width\":900,\"height\":686},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/akd-rule-too-early-to-assess-too-late-for-regrets\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"AKD Rule: Too Early To Assess, Too Late For Regrets\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/\",\"name\":\"Colombo Telegraph\",\"description\":\"In journalism truth is a process\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/#\/schema\/person\/ca4aa88b49282c1bbb2303616a55ed1b\",\"name\":\"Vishwamithra\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ab53d292d6fa2a3527abf8c8ec803b1e7ec1f05b26a1d20ce12e42972fbfcf88?s=96&d=identicon&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ab53d292d6fa2a3527abf8c8ec803b1e7ec1f05b26a1d20ce12e42972fbfcf88?s=96&d=identicon&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Vishwamithra\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/author\/vishwamithra\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"AKD Rule: Too Early To Assess, Too Late For Regrets - Colombo Telegraph","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/akd-rule-too-early-to-assess-too-late-for-regrets\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"AKD Rule: Too Early To Assess, Too Late For Regrets - Colombo Telegraph","og_description":"[…]","og_url":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/akd-rule-too-early-to-assess-too-late-for-regrets\/","og_site_name":"Colombo Telegraph","article_published_time":"2025-01-14T05:17:23+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-01-24T05:23:13+00:00","og_image":[{"width":900,"height":686,"url":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Anura-Kumara-Dissanayake-pic-AKD-FB.jpeg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Vishwamithra","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Vishwamithra","Est. reading time":"6 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/akd-rule-too-early-to-assess-too-late-for-regrets\/","url":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/akd-rule-too-early-to-assess-too-late-for-regrets\/","name":"AKD Rule: Too Early To Assess, Too Late For Regrets - Colombo Telegraph","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/akd-rule-too-early-to-assess-too-late-for-regrets\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/akd-rule-too-early-to-assess-too-late-for-regrets\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Anura-Kumara-Dissanayake-pic-AKD-FB.jpeg","datePublished":"2025-01-14T05:17:23+00:00","dateModified":"2025-01-24T05:23:13+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/#\/schema\/person\/ca4aa88b49282c1bbb2303616a55ed1b"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/akd-rule-too-early-to-assess-too-late-for-regrets\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/akd-rule-too-early-to-assess-too-late-for-regrets\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/akd-rule-too-early-to-assess-too-late-for-regrets\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Anura-Kumara-Dissanayake-pic-AKD-FB.jpeg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Anura-Kumara-Dissanayake-pic-AKD-FB.jpeg","width":900,"height":686},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/akd-rule-too-early-to-assess-too-late-for-regrets\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"AKD Rule: Too Early To Assess, Too Late For Regrets"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/","name":"Colombo Telegraph","description":"In journalism truth is a process","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/#\/schema\/person\/ca4aa88b49282c1bbb2303616a55ed1b","name":"Vishwamithra","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ab53d292d6fa2a3527abf8c8ec803b1e7ec1f05b26a1d20ce12e42972fbfcf88?s=96&d=identicon&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ab53d292d6fa2a3527abf8c8ec803b1e7ec1f05b26a1d20ce12e42972fbfcf88?s=96&d=identicon&r=g","caption":"Vishwamithra"},"url":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/author\/vishwamithra\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Anura-Kumara-Dissanayake-pic-AKD-FB.jpeg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/240536","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/29"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=240536"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/240536\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":240650,"href":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/240536\/revisions\/240650"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/239359"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=240536"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=240536"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=240536"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}