Former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga has voiced strong concern over what she described as the erosion of Sri Lanka’s professional public service, warning that selective justice and politically driven governance threaten the foundations of the State.
In a statement issued on her Facebook page, Kumaratunga said she had decided to share extracts from an article titled “When Justice Becomes Selective”, stating that the issues raised in the article deeply affect the country’s system of governance.
Kumaratunga said she fully agreed with the views expressed in the article, describing it as thoughtful and well-reasoned, particularly in its examination of the role of integrity within the public service.
Referring to former Presidential Secretary Saman Ekanayake, who is currently in remand custody over the approval of funds for a foreign visit by then President Ranil Wickremesinghe in 2023, Kumaratunga said she knew Ekanayake personally and described him as a scrupulously honest and highly professional public servant.
“A government cannot function without a professional, efficient and honest public service,” Kumaratunga said, adding that while political leaders need not possess decades of administrative experience, they must demonstrate unshakeable integrity and rely on career public servants to govern effectively.
She warned that the present government appeared to be dismantling what remains of the country’s public service and replacing it with party loyalists lacking the necessary qualifications and experience, a trend she said would further weaken democratic governance.
Kumaratunga also linked the 2022 Aragalaya protest movement to growing public awareness of governance failures, stating that citizens rose up only after realizing how severely governance standards had deteriorated.
She said Sri Lanka continues to suffer the consequences of nearly two decades of poor governance and cautioned that the country could descend into further chaos unless the current approach to governance is changed.
Echoing the conclusions of the Vox Civis article, Kumaratunga said the responsibility for reversing this decline ultimately lies with the people, urging citizens to question decisions, understand the long-term consequences, and make democratic choices to rebuild the nation. (Newswire)