Sri Lanka: National assets or vanity projects?

by Reggie Ponnampalam-Aug 26, 2017

August 26, 2017, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe has resigned or is resigned to his fate. The Cover Page reads “violation of collective responsibility of Cabinet” and the ‘Inside Story’ needs to be unraveled. Whether it would be a ‘bond’ thriller or a ‘harbouring’ romance is yet to be seen.

The bone of contention is that the Cabinet decides to lease out the Hambantota Port and Wijeyadasa subsequently publicly vows to regain the port. I would like to dig a little deeper and point out that, when this was declared open, it was the Magampura Mahinda Rajapaksa Port. Over a billion Dollars was borrowed to build this edifice. There were also reports of millions of dollars more being spent on blasting some underwater rocks. The ‘Opening Ceremony’ was another orchestration of opulence.

What is an asset? A Dictionary would describe it as “An item of property owned by a person or group, regarded as having value and available to meet debts, commitments, or legacies”. We have debts to pay for something that is in no way capable of providing a Return on Investment (ROI) in its present state; we don’t have the money to repay the debt or even carry on subsidizing its existence. It is reported that the SLPA is diverting revenue from its Colombo Port operations to keep Mahinda Rajapaksa Port afloat. A national problem! Anyone and everyone objects to leasing it out, but I have not come across anyone who has come up with an alternative solution. No one questions how and why this is now referred to as the Hambantota Port and not the previously touted as the Magampura Mahinda Rajapaksa Port.

Today’s newspapers (25/AUG) carry a news item where about 400 workers are protesting against the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) proposal for the “Mattala International Airport”. I remember watching live television coverage of Mahinda Rajapaksa, his entire family (and extensions), together with his retinue of Hosannah Singers arriving in an Airbus and declaring open the “Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport”. I came across a report that stated that in 2014, it catered to 3,000 flights with 21,000 passengers. Turnover? Future generations would be turning over in their graves paying back the loan and continuing to subsidize this colossus. The money borrowed has to be repaid. How? I did read some proposals by persons with experience in airline operations being published. PPP or leasing was among the proposals. According to today’s news report, they claim that “they strongly believed that their airport could be developed if the government made a serious effort to do so without trying to divest it on the pretext of running it as a public-private partnership”. Can they come up with a concrete proposal? Will they?

How many International Conferences do we host a year – around 10 or 15? I’m not referring to doctors and dentists having their conferences; it’s about something bigger in stature. The Magampura Mahinda Rajapaksa Convention Centre was built at a cost of millions of dollars – borrowed or, in practical terms, by burrowing into the pockets of future generations. Ostensibly to host CHOGM, but more likely an ego trip. Hosting any Conference there would entail additional cost of transporting dignitaries to the venue, accommodating them and bringing them back to Colombo. As it is, maintenance is costing millions of rupees monthly. And we have loan installments falling due. Any suggestions on what we could do with this?

Then we come to the Mahinda Rajapaksa International Stadium, built to host the 2011 World Cup. I am an ardent cricket fan but I would not go all the way to Hambantota to watch a cricket match. And with limited accommodation facilities in the area, returning after the match is a strain. How many matches have been played there since the World Cup? There were reports of seats being cannibalized from the Dambulla Stadium. For what – to pontificate an ego? Who is paying the loan installments? And the maintenance?

We are a gullible people susceptible to clichés. “national assets” sounds very impressive. I would rather look at these edifices as colossal waste where vanity overrode priority. I have heard it being reported that someone very familiar with MR had stated that if the money spent on these four “Vanity Projects” had been used to build bunds, dams and reservoirs, the Mahinda Rajapaksa name could even outlast that of Parakramabahu. Then again, weren’t there songs written about a “Maha Rajanani”? Hosannah!

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PS: While on the subject of leasing there is another “asset” that could be leased out – no problem with 99 years. If they are willing to take the management as well, we could even extend it to 999 years. I’m talking of our cricket team!