R. M. A. B. Dassanayake

In these disorderly times we often hear of stories relating to thoughtless misappropriation of the country's finances including misuse of aid grants - which amounts to a robbery of peoples' money - by political toprungers and highly placed bureaucrats in corporation and state services to build super mansions, luxury holiday bungalows and to acquire glitzy limousines - supposedly for use in their performance/non performance of state duties and official functions.

"A king can do no wrong" or the divine right of kings was a blindly voiced ancient dictum that seems to have now been extended to queens and bureaucrats too. In the dark ages literally and metaphorically - the masses were relegated to a state of servitude. They were treated as servile serfs. Repression oppression and suppression of their rights were the order of the day. Human rights were unheard of.

However, after Budhhist, - an enlightened and rational religious philosophy originated and spread in the orient, the clouds of darkness appeared to have cleared and wafted away to some extent. People began to look around and understand the true nature of things and men and matters. The age of reason and enlightenment gradually appeared in the horizon. Monarchs who were accustomed to that unprincipled autocratic blind belief of divine right too were beginning to see things in a new light of reason and cause and effect, an embryonic state of democracy began to take shape.

Amidst the powerful monarchical system the redeeming democratic trends influenced by Buddhistic rationalism, in the course of time began to spread in some small and subsequent bigger waves to the occident as well. However, enlightened human values, in their true sense had not taken root fully. Kings and Queens were yet in their exalted pedestals of power and prestige. They exulted and wallowed in luxury in their palaces in kingly comfort and self indulgence.

It was only after the French Revolution when people rebelled against the despotic system of oppressive rule and self indulgence of the ruling outfit that the Kings and Queens began to relent and by stages they were forced to adopt some aspects of democracy. They had to gradually give up some of the dirty, features of their ultra luxurious life styles.

Despite the enlightened rational and modernistic thoughts and learning now in vogue globally. Some of the Rulers in the Middle East and the Orient proper, have not been able yet to embrace the via media policy of leading moderate life styles eschewing excessive luxury.

Some of the monarchical descendents and the last links of aristocratic families continue to lead their customarily brought up high living styles which of course they will be compelled to give up when tides of protest defiance and revisionism gather momentum in a world of fast growing turbulence and dissension.

People could generally bear up such eccentricities of the ruling class and pardon to some extent their ostentatious foibles in the belief that they would also by subject to the vicissitudes in the general nature of things - when the principles of change and impermanence do justice to one and all.

What most people including reasonable and right thinking segments cannot suffer or tolerate is the utterly haughty pretentions and uncaring attitudes of certain nondescript persons who by some chance or luck and support of unsuspecting rural people grabbed political fortune by way of being elected as politicians. They have forgotten entirely their humble origins and began to amass wealth by unscrupulous means and stamped their authority through political power and prestige. They have in some ways attempted to surpass even the hereditary aristocrats who are now in a way beginning to be somewhat reasonable in their general conduct.

Some of the shallow minded politicos consider it their political right and privilege to acquire whatever is possible from the state and the people by way of luxury mansions and vehicles besides other valuables.

The suffering of the people whom they rob is no concern of theirs. They little realise the impermanence of things and the law of causative retribution for sins and follies they commit in their artificially elevated life span.

Landed proprietors, business magnates, captains of industry and such other wealthy individuals of course can build their own private residences on whatever, magnificent scale of their choice and lead their individual lives in the lap of luxury since it is from their own earnings - hard earned or deceitfully earned is of no significance as long as they do not misappropriate poor peoples resources. In that context reasonable people will not condemn them their opulence.

What is intolerable is the thoughtless squandering of public money - peoples money - by political big wigs and bureaucrats in the most anti-people manner and flaunting of opulence by way of political oneupmanship and high bureaucratic status at a time when a vast mass of people suffer in silence poverty and dereliction in a country where the national resources are so meagre and limited for such extravagance.

With all the serious allegations levelled against various ministries and corporations and the glaring physical evidence available for misuse of public funds and extravagance in regard to the dispensation of financial resources for personal and individual benefit of political heavyweights and bureaucratic big shots from the central government down to the provincial council power blocks - it is regrettable that the top most of the ruling hierarchy could not take corrective action to exercise disciplinary control and regulate utilisation of state funds. No action seems to have been taken to enforce checks and balances with a view to avoiding extravagance and wilful waste of aid funds in most corporations and state activities.

The public would of course not grudge the reasonable utilisation of state funds on a moderate scale for legitimate welfare purposes, holiday homes and housing requirements of staff and administrators subject to governmental regulations since these benefits are duly accepted rights and privileges of officials.

The oft repeated argument that the stalwarts of the past regime committed worst misdeeds and fraudulent activity is no reason for those in the present regime to continue the same misdeeds in a subtle or same manner - sometimes on an increased degree in certain issues.

People rejected the past perpetrators of misdeeds and fraud expecting a better deal in most respects as promised by the present lot in all their electioneering propaganda. But what have the people got? As some critics point out they may have fallen from the frying pan to the fire.