Olympics for Official(s)’ FOC jaunt while Athletes ‘also ran’

I thought of giving expression to my own thoughts with reference to the article that appeared in the Sunday Times -ST (dated 28th August 2016) under the above title; accordingly, the Sri Lankan contingent to the Rio Olympics included 9 athletes and 46 officials, a ratio of 1:5, perhaps an Olympic record in itself (It would be worthwhile if some comparative numbers from other countries are made available)

I found this story quite alarming and saddening; alarming because of the callous nature or total disregard for public opinion when spending public funds; the question is who was responsible for allowing this to happen? All those in the line of authority who approved the trip for the officials (the case of athletes will not be questioned as it is best dealt with by those who have inside information) must be taken to task and action to be taken accordingly. The questioning should begin from the top since, invariably, those at the bottom or middle would have obtained approval from them. It would be interesting to find out the total expenditure for this ride to RIO at the taxpayers expense. I would assume that since the passage of RTI (Right to Information) bill, we have the right to ask for and receive this information.

Saddening because many in the lower strata of society are struggling to make ends meet. They do not have proper shelter and are compelled to live in huts subject to the elements and in some cases, living in fear of the wild elephants. Schools in the rural/ less developed areas do not have basic facilities such as chairs, toilets and other amenities. The roads and by ways are in deplorable condition and clean water is a rare commodityin many rural areas. Given such a scenario, do we have the right to waste precious funds which could be better spent towards the alleviation of the living conditions of the poor and the weak.Nobody has the right to spend public money without being accountable. Unfortunately, a lot of improvement is needed in accountability in this country; it is easily palmed off with a range of excuses that also includes blaming the previous officials or regime.How ethical is it to waste state funds when many citizens of the country are in dire straits, financially, socially and otherwise? As concerned citizens of this country, we all need to raise our voice to ensure that the public money is not wasted.

The comments in the ST from well known personalities including Mr K.L. F Wijedasa, former Director of Sports, University of Colombo, deserves the attention of all those who love sports in particular and the country in general. I wish to commend MrWijedasa for his candid views; having been a pupil of his at University of Colombo in the 1970’s, I was extremely happy to read the comments from a person with an impeccable record of service and conduct. To quote a few parts of his comments

The money that was to be spent for the development of Sports, has been utilized for the officials. This is indeed a crime.

Today the integrity and transparency within Sports bodies has been completely violated with no witnesses.

May I also quote parts of the comments of MrYoganandaWijesundara (Retired Director – Institute of Sports Science)

It was disgraceful to note that a leading Sports journalist in the country changed his credentials to pose off as a coach.

It has been observed that many officials’ children too travelled to Rio. It is disgusting to take the facilities of officials. The NOC is meant to serve Sports, but finally it seems, from these incidents, they are selling Sport for a living.

Mr. Sugath Thilakaratne, President Sri Lanka Athletic Association had this to say: to quote

For taking outsiders as officials, the NOC and the Ministry of Sports should be held totally responsible for wasting public money

[Please read the full texts of several prominent personalities including the above mentioned in the ST of 28th August 2016 in order to understand the gravity of the wasteful and unethical exercise in the way the “Trip to Rio” took place; NOC refers to the National Olympic Committee]

We need to act fast, on the spot so to speak in line with the techniques adopted by some insurance companies. We seem to go in circles with nobody responsible or accountable and there by our time and resources including money are wasted. I do not think it is necessary to elaborate or give examples as one has to just take a newspaper and read the headlines to get an insight into the state we are in.

Most of the issues die a natural death after two weeks (the Sri Lankan standard as far as memory is concerned). The best way to escape an inquiry and avoid facing any penalty is to lie low for two weeks and then go on regardless in the same old way. We need to change this trend to prevent the nation going further down the economic precipice, precariously placed as it is. There has to be collective effort with cooperation from all quarters who are keen to ensure good governance in this country.

The first step in making this country a true pearl in the Indian Ocean is to change the attitude of the officials, an attitude that would include giving top priority to honesty, integrity, civic mindedness among other fundamental values. Such an attitudinal change is a must if we are to progress as a nation. All other physical infra structural developments – roads, buildings etc – will be useless if we do not change our attitude.

Sri Lanka is a beautiful country blessed with one of the (if not the) best climates in the world, moderate but not extreme in any form, a country that has one of the most intelligent human resources (unfortunately not properly utilized in this country) who perform well outside of Sri Lanka, a country that is grappling with many perennial issues that no government has been able to resolve (higher education is one such sector, corruption, law and order, ragging at Universities,never ending protests and strikes that are common feature especially significant being the ‘cat’ strikes at hospitals). Invariably in keeping with the adage “when the elephants fight, the ants get crushed”, it is the poor and non- influential who are harassed and undergo untold hardships.

Let there be justice; justice must not only be done but also seen to be done. Let the society as whole rise against waste in the public sector, speak up and be counted.