Dr Sarath Obeysekera 

When JR was voted to be the prime minister and later to become the first president my mother wrote to me to Russia and said that ” Sri Lanka will have a prosperous   ( Saubaghyamath anagathayak) future.

What did we get? 

A doomed Constitution which has become a bane to the country.

Whatever said and done despite the fact that my mother was hardcore green party follower and my father who wore a national dress when SWRD become the prime minister, I was of the opinion that we were not ready for a sudden change.

We got a TV with Japanese funding, and I did not have to get an exit permit to travel abroad, I thought we are not yet ready.

Free Trade Zones were opened up , all the Industries started by Mrs. B with Russian help were left to rot

Cement, Plywood, paper, Steel, textile, petroleum, fertilizer factories which should have been developed with improved productivity were either sold or closed down.

People wanted to see miracles in the face of an open economy 

What did we get?

Mahaweli with a very high level of purported corruption has given some benefit to the country but our productivity was at the lowest level

Then Sirikotha imported the first Tuk Tuk with much publicity, and what did we get?

Millions of youngsters are now unproductive.

My opinion is that we should have had a dictatorship with s socialist outlook like China and make the people abide by the rule of law and then slowly open up to the west and open economy like China.

Now people are lamenting about lack of discipline and want a ruler with strong alienation to uphold law and order, but in a year or two they will complain?

But we may have higher productivity or do we prefer democracy with an empty stomach?

Dr. Sarath Obeysekera