Post Elections

So it's all done now. Mr. Rajapakse is in for another 6 years whether you like it or not. Regardless of who won the elections there's a few things that should be done.

The first is having strong ties with the United States, which is arguably the most influential nation on the planet. Sarath Fonseka was said to be a US puppet by some and may have been better in this regard. Still the same can be capitalized by the current government as well. China is all well and good but we really need some finesse in the Foreign Service in terms of negotiating the best settlement for our country. Really we need to balance our benefactors...

Education should really be revamped in a major way. There is a growing trend in Sri Lanka whereby people don't want to do menial work anymore. I heard firsthand from a tea estate owner that the future of the tea industry in the country was very bleak. Namely because finding people willing to work on tea estates was difficult. People wanted more skilled jobs that paid better. The opportunity to capitalize on such things has always been there. To some extent Sri Lanka has expanded its IT and other outsourcing but there is still a long way to go. We really need to move away from the age old plantation economy. Lack of English is a major obstacle for development...

Whether you voted for Mr. Rajapakse or not there's no real point opposing the Government. Better to make the best out of the current situation. Furthermore it would seem that the toughest part is ahead of the current President with a load of promises to deliver upon.
Should he fail to do so his name and reputation for winning the war will be tarnished in the annals of history.

It is my belief that a significant majority of the country wanted this outcome in the Election. If one is to believe the allegations of vote rigging it is highly likely that the result would have been closer but most likely the same. If this wasn't the case... we'll most likely never know.

Lastly about the campaigns themselves... Mr. Fonseka was greatly lacking in terms of his charisma. His speeches were quite dull compared to Mr. Rajapakses and his campaign lacked a certain punch in terms of personality. It seemed somewhat similar to the race between Bush and Kerry with Kerry claiming he was a military man with a Purple Heart and other medals. That wasn't enough to win the election. He lost to Bush...

I guess we all have to wait and see what the future holds... but it may not be as bleak as some people are making it out to be.

As always if you object to any of the above... feel free to challenge.