Now that the dust has settled on the General Election 2020 and its result, it is time to begin work in earnest. This is the message that was delivered by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to all Cabinet and State Ministers who were sworn in on Wednesday at the historic Audience Hall in Kandy.
In fact, President Rajapaksa has told them that all formalities such as assuming duties must be completed by tomorrow, unlike in the past when Ministers took their own sweet time to get down to business. This is a refreshing, and even radical departure from the usual pattern.
The functions, departments and agencies coming under them, office details and even the vehicle entitlement were given to them in black and white along with the appointment letter itself, so that no one can complain later about having no place to work or no vehicles to travel in.
And in an act of accountability and transparency that has come to define the Gotabaya Rajapaksa administration, the departments and functions of each Ministry were clearly outlined in a gazette notification released a couple of days prior to the swearing-in.
This is indeed the first time in recent years that such a gazette was issued before the Cabinet was sworn-in, whereas on previous occasions it used to take at least 2-3 weeks for this gazette to appear. In such scenarios, tussles were not uncommon among Ministers for various departments and functions.
With this gazette notification, the Ministers as well as the public know exactly which Minister or Ministry is responsible for a particular subject and or Government department.
Although much has been said about the allocation of Ministry subjects in a rational, scientific manner, this is actually the first time that such a process has been really followed. We have seen many instances of both SLFP-led and UNP-led Governments bringing totally disparate subjects such as, Highways and Education together in creating Ministries.
This makes it impossible for the relevant Minister and his or her officials to focus on one key area as they have to divide their attention to two completely different subjects. This creates confusion to the point where no real progress is made in either subject.
On the other hand, single subjects/Ministries have been assigned to all Cabinet Ministers this time, which will make their work much easier. Also, instead of dividing a single subject among three or four Ministers (e.g. School Education, Higher Education, Vocational Training etc), there is now only one Cabinet Minister and in some instances, one State Minister. For example, Prof. G.L. Peiris will handle all areas of education. After all, such subjects are a seamless whole that really cannot be separated.
It is also a relief to the taxpayer that the Cabinet has less than 30 members and even with State Ministers counted in, there are less than 70 Ministers. This is in sharp contrast to some previous Governments which had nearly 120 Ministers. Large Cabinets are a luxury the country cannot afford at this post-Covid juncture, when more resources have to be channelled for economic revival.
The President has also taken a keen interest in appointing State Ministers and allocating subjects for them. Presidents have generally considered State Ministers as an afterthought, dishing out the crumbs falling off the Cabinet table to the second-tier MPs to keep them happy.
This picture has completely changed this time, with a firm focus on subjects aligned with the restoration of the local economy in the post-Covid era.
Agriculture has especially received a lot of attention, with several State Ministers assigned to oversee different subject areas and crops. This is significant, given the President’s emphasis on reviving local production and halting imports of essential agri foods and goods.
It is now vital for the Ministers to identify the problems and shortcomings in their assigned subjects, meet the relevant stakeholders and begin work. To give another example from the education sector, Education Minister Prof. Peiris has already identified the need to revamp education to meet the challenges of the job market.
There is no need to reinvent the wheel, but identifying the priorities in a given subject area is a must. For example, Agriculture Minister, (Mahindananda Aluthgamage) must strive to find an effective solution for the perennial problem of Post Harvest Losses (PHL).
If each Minister does this, it would not be difficult to address all these issues and ensure rapid development.
It is also vital for Ministers to get inputs from the public, not just officials and experts. At least one Minister has pledged to hold mobile services from time to time to address the issues faced by the public vis-à-vis his Ministry.
This is a good move that others can emulate. Most Ministers get cocooned in their air-conditioned offices in Colombo without getting to know the ideas and problems of the public. We hope that this Cabinet will be an exception to the norm and with President Rajapaksa keeping a close watch on their progress, they will anyway have no time to lie idle.
The Ministers must now act fast to deliver all the goals outlined in the President’s Vistas of Prosperity and Splendour Policy Statement. They must not disappoint the masses who gave an unprecedented two-thirds majority mandate to the SLPP-led Government to work for the country’s uplift. Failure is definitely not an option in the eyes of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. The time to act is now.