✌✌✌✌ THE HINDU ✌✌✌✌
✌✌ Sasikala rising ✌✌
That V.K. Sasikala was nominated general secretary of the AIADMK by its general council is no surprise. Her elevation from party worker to party head has followed days of demands and entreaties from senior AIADMK leaders that she take up the job. Two things counted in her favour. She was the closest friend of Jayalalithaa, something that means a lot in the personality cult-based structure of the AIADMK. As importantly, any other choice would have divided the party into fractious factions. Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam, the only other possible contender, himself backed Ms. Sasikala. As did most other party leaders, including prominent ministers, who rely on their caste bases for popular support. However, it is doubtful whether the AIADMK rank and file is really enthused by the choice — a fact that will have a bearing on the future of the party. It is not surprising that Ms. Sasikala lacks popular appeal. Over the last two decades, her influence over the party and State politics has been carefully and almost wholly orchestrated from the backroom. Throughout her years at the helm, Jayalalithaa made sure there was no credible second line of leadership in the party. Ms. Sasikala herself was not given a party post, but the fact that she lived at the Poes Garden residence of Jayalalithaa gave her an imposing authority within the AIADMK.
The party’s problems do not end with Ms. Sasikala’s elevation. A possible risk is that the authority of Mr. Panneerselvam as Chief Minister could be undermined by the ascent of Ms. Sasikala. Already several ministers have, both privately and publicly, urged her to take over as Chief Minister. The post is hers for the asking, given that she has the backing of most MLAs; Mr. Panneerselvam himself is unlikely to offer any resistance. However, as an accused in the disproportionate assets case against Jayalalithaa, Ms. Sasikala is awaiting a judgment in the Supreme Court in an appeal against her acquittal by the Karnataka High Court after a conviction by the trial court. Following searches in the residential and office premises of Chief Secretary P. Rama Mohana Rao by Income Tax and Enforcement Directorate authorities, questions have been raised about the involvement of higher-ups in the AIADMK in corruption. This has been reinforced by the fact that some top leaders have been close to mining baron Sekhar Reddy, who has been arrested for possession of huge amounts of cash in new currency notes. In such circumstances, it would be both unwise and improper for Ms. Sasikala to take over the State’s administration. In a twist of fate, she has emerged as the most powerful person in Tamil Nadu. But this has occurred in a fragile political environment. Ms. Sasikala and the party need to act with patience and restraint, not self-serving haste.
✌✌ Peace on track in Colombia ✌✌
Colombia’s government now knows only too well that there is many a slip between the cup and the lip. In October, a referendum to ratify a painstakingly negotiated peace deal it had signed with the long-time insurgent organisation, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), was narrowly defeated. A more piecemeal, less ambitious and sequenced process since then has helped Bogota notch its first significant victory in effecting the peace deal with the rebels. Now, Colombia’s Congress has unanimously approved an amnesty law granting immunity to FARC fighters from prosecution for committing minor crimes, clearing a major hurdle in effecting the revised peace accord. Those accused of major crimes will be tried by a special tribunal. The main difficulty in passing this measure was the intransigence of the leading opposition, the right-wing Centro Democratico led by former President Alvaro Uribe, who had led a vigorous campaign first against talks between the government and the rebels, later during the referendum and also when a revised accord was eventually signed and ratified by Congress on December 1. The party abstained during voting both during the ratification and when the amnesty law was introduced. The law helps overcome a key sticking point for those who voted “No” in the October referendum and who felt that the government was being too lenient with those among the FARC commanders accused of severe crimes. The law will reassure the rebels, who are moving to special demobilisation zones, marking a breakthrough in the five-decade-long civil war that has taken more than 2,20,000 lives.
Without doubt, the Nobel Peace Prize given to Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos gave him the necessary ballast and international support to carry out these steps. But there are other laws to be passed, including those addressing FARC’s demands for agrarian reform and compensation to victims of the civil war. There is still some distance to go before FARC converts itself into a political party to participate in the contested polity. Amendments to the peace accord include requirements from FARC to share details about any involvement in drug production and declaration of assets. But there is a clear commitment towards peace shown by both the government and FARC, especially after the initial accord was signed. If things go as per the government’s plan, the rebels should become civilians by May 2017, culminating in the end of a process that began with negotiations four years ago.
✌✌✌✌ THE ECONOMIC TIMES ✌✌✌✌
✌✌ Government should go ahead and sell off non-strategic PSUs ✌✌
The government appears to be unlikely to push ahead with its divestment plan in the current fiscal due to a choppy market and the comfortable revenue position. It shows complacency and defeats the goal of boosting the performance of state-owned enterprises. The government must proactively sell shares of profit-making state-owned companies that are not strategic any more. The stake sales need not have to wait for the right level of stock prices. Large-scale disinvestment in these PSUs will help shore up their performance. The case for the government to exit sectors such as steel and power is compelling, given that the private sector has developed technical and managerial capability to operate in these areas.
The government should foray into new sectors — advanced manufacturing in microelectronics, aerospace, telecom and new-generation drugs — where the private sector does not have the requisite expertise and capability. A dynamic approach is needed for the government to create companies that get into serious R&D, akin to state-owned CDoT that showed promise to boost indigenous telecom R&D. It should also swiftly wind up loss making companies and use the money garnered through reshuffling assets as capital investment to build infrastructure that the country badly needs.
Of the budgeted target of Rs 56,500 crore this fiscal year, the government has so far raised about Rs 21,432 crore through share buyback in companies that include Coal India, Nalco, HCL, NHPC, NMDC and BEL, apart from Rs 2,096 crore as part-sale of its holding in Specified Undertaking of the UTI (SUUTI). Three-fourths of the amount has been raised by buybacks, which preclude some public holding in these companies, generating some additional pressure to perform and be transparent.
✌✌ Sasikala rising ✌✌
That V.K. Sasikala was nominated general secretary of the AIADMK by its general council is no surprise. Her elevation from party worker to party head has followed days of demands and entreaties from senior AIADMK leaders that she take up the job. Two things counted in her favour. She was the closest friend of Jayalalithaa, something that means a lot in the personality cult-based structure of the AIADMK. As importantly, any other choice would have divided the party into fractious factions. Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam, the only other possible contender, himself backed Ms. Sasikala. As did most other party leaders, including prominent ministers, who rely on their caste bases for popular support. However, it is doubtful whether the AIADMK rank and file is really enthused by the choice — a fact that will have a bearing on the future of the party. It is not surprising that Ms. Sasikala lacks popular appeal. Over the last two decades, her influence over the party and State politics has been carefully and almost wholly orchestrated from the backroom. Throughout her years at the helm, Jayalalithaa made sure there was no credible second line of leadership in the party. Ms. Sasikala herself was not given a party post, but the fact that she lived at the Poes Garden residence of Jayalalithaa gave her an imposing authority within the AIADMK.
The party’s problems do not end with Ms. Sasikala’s elevation. A possible risk is that the authority of Mr. Panneerselvam as Chief Minister could be undermined by the ascent of Ms. Sasikala. Already several ministers have, both privately and publicly, urged her to take over as Chief Minister. The post is hers for the asking, given that she has the backing of most MLAs; Mr. Panneerselvam himself is unlikely to offer any resistance. However, as an accused in the disproportionate assets case against Jayalalithaa, Ms. Sasikala is awaiting a judgment in the Supreme Court in an appeal against her acquittal by the Karnataka High Court after a conviction by the trial court. Following searches in the residential and office premises of Chief Secretary P. Rama Mohana Rao by Income Tax and Enforcement Directorate authorities, questions have been raised about the involvement of higher-ups in the AIADMK in corruption. This has been reinforced by the fact that some top leaders have been close to mining baron Sekhar Reddy, who has been arrested for possession of huge amounts of cash in new currency notes. In such circumstances, it would be both unwise and improper for Ms. Sasikala to take over the State’s administration. In a twist of fate, she has emerged as the most powerful person in Tamil Nadu. But this has occurred in a fragile political environment. Ms. Sasikala and the party need to act with patience and restraint, not self-serving haste.
✌✌ Peace on track in Colombia ✌✌
Colombia’s government now knows only too well that there is many a slip between the cup and the lip. In October, a referendum to ratify a painstakingly negotiated peace deal it had signed with the long-time insurgent organisation, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), was narrowly defeated. A more piecemeal, less ambitious and sequenced process since then has helped Bogota notch its first significant victory in effecting the peace deal with the rebels. Now, Colombia’s Congress has unanimously approved an amnesty law granting immunity to FARC fighters from prosecution for committing minor crimes, clearing a major hurdle in effecting the revised peace accord. Those accused of major crimes will be tried by a special tribunal. The main difficulty in passing this measure was the intransigence of the leading opposition, the right-wing Centro Democratico led by former President Alvaro Uribe, who had led a vigorous campaign first against talks between the government and the rebels, later during the referendum and also when a revised accord was eventually signed and ratified by Congress on December 1. The party abstained during voting both during the ratification and when the amnesty law was introduced. The law helps overcome a key sticking point for those who voted “No” in the October referendum and who felt that the government was being too lenient with those among the FARC commanders accused of severe crimes. The law will reassure the rebels, who are moving to special demobilisation zones, marking a breakthrough in the five-decade-long civil war that has taken more than 2,20,000 lives.
Without doubt, the Nobel Peace Prize given to Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos gave him the necessary ballast and international support to carry out these steps. But there are other laws to be passed, including those addressing FARC’s demands for agrarian reform and compensation to victims of the civil war. There is still some distance to go before FARC converts itself into a political party to participate in the contested polity. Amendments to the peace accord include requirements from FARC to share details about any involvement in drug production and declaration of assets. But there is a clear commitment towards peace shown by both the government and FARC, especially after the initial accord was signed. If things go as per the government’s plan, the rebels should become civilians by May 2017, culminating in the end of a process that began with negotiations four years ago.
✌✌✌✌ THE ECONOMIC TIMES ✌✌✌✌
✌✌ Government should go ahead and sell off non-strategic PSUs ✌✌
The government appears to be unlikely to push ahead with its divestment plan in the current fiscal due to a choppy market and the comfortable revenue position. It shows complacency and defeats the goal of boosting the performance of state-owned enterprises. The government must proactively sell shares of profit-making state-owned companies that are not strategic any more. The stake sales need not have to wait for the right level of stock prices. Large-scale disinvestment in these PSUs will help shore up their performance. The case for the government to exit sectors such as steel and power is compelling, given that the private sector has developed technical and managerial capability to operate in these areas.
The government should foray into new sectors — advanced manufacturing in microelectronics, aerospace, telecom and new-generation drugs — where the private sector does not have the requisite expertise and capability. A dynamic approach is needed for the government to create companies that get into serious R&D, akin to state-owned CDoT that showed promise to boost indigenous telecom R&D. It should also swiftly wind up loss making companies and use the money garnered through reshuffling assets as capital investment to build infrastructure that the country badly needs.
Of the budgeted target of Rs 56,500 crore this fiscal year, the government has so far raised about Rs 21,432 crore through share buyback in companies that include Coal India, Nalco, HCL, NHPC, NMDC and BEL, apart from Rs 2,096 crore as part-sale of its holding in Specified Undertaking of the UTI (SUUTI). Three-fourths of the amount has been raised by buybacks, which preclude some public holding in these companies, generating some additional pressure to perform and be transparent.
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