There is a familiar sinking feeling Sri Lankans experience every time news breaks about a politician involved in a road accident or public incident allegedly linked to alcohol. It does not shock anymore. It is weary recognition, another headline, another explanation, another promise that the law will take its course. And then, almost inevitably, silence.
The recent accident involving MP Asoka Ranwala has once again forced the country to confront an uncomfortable truth. This is not about one individual alone. It is about a culture that has been allowed to fester across successive governments, where discipline is demanded from citizens but treated as optional by some lawmakers.
In the Ranwala incident, as with many before it, the public response was swift. Questions were asked. Statements scrutinised. What stood out was not merely the incident itself but the familiarity of the pattern. A road. A powerful individual. Allegations of recklessness. And a nation asking, quietly and angrily, when this will finally end. For families who have lost loved ones to drunk or reckless drivers, these stories reopen wounds. For parents who warn their children to be careful on Sri Lanka’s roads, they reinforce a grim reality. The law may exist, but its application depends on who you are. Sri Lanka’s alcohol problem is not abstract. It plays out daily on highways, village roads and city streets. Hospitals see the consequences. Police statistics record them. Communities live with them. When Members of Parliament are implicated in alcohol related incidents, the damage multiplies. These are not anonymous drivers. These are lawmakers. Role models, whether they accept that label or not.
Parliament is meant to represent the best of public service. Yet too often, behaviour outside its chambers contradicts the values spoken within. Discipline cannot be compartmentalised. An MP does not stop being a public figure after midnight or behind the wheel of a vehicle. Power does not come with an off switch. What makes this issue deeply human is that recklessness never harms only the reckless. It harms pedestrians waiting to cross a road. It harms families driving home. It harms police officers forced to navigate political pressure. And it harms a society already struggling with lawlessness and mistrust.
The Asoka Ranwala case should not become just another episode in a long list. It should be a turning point. Not because of outrage, but because of resolve. Because Sri Lankans are tired of selective accountability. Because young people deserve to see that no one is above the law. There is also a moral contradiction at play. MPs routinely speak about discipline, values and social responsibility. They debate laws on road safety, substance abuse and public order. Yet when those same standards are breached by their own, the response is often defensive rather than decisive. This hypocrisy is corrosive. It teaches citizens that laws are flexible for the powerful and rigid for everyone else. It teaches cynicism instead of citizenship.
Solutions do exist, but they require courage.
First, Parliament must accept that discipline begins at home. A binding and enforceable code of conduct must apply to MPs at all times, not just during sittings. Alcohol related offences should trigger immediate consequences, including suspension from parliamentary duties pending investigation. Second, mandatory alcohol and substance testing must be standard procedure for any MP involved in a road accident or public disturbance. No exceptions. No delays. Transparency builds trust. Secrecy destroys it.
Third, investigations involving MPs must be handled independently, free from political influence. The perception that politicians receive special treatment is as damaging as proof of it. Fourth, Parliament should publicly commit to reducing alcohol related harm by leading from the front. This means MPs voluntarily adhering to stricter personal standards, particularly when driving. Leadership is not symbolic. It is behavioural.
Fifth, the public has a right to information. When incidents occur, timely and factual updates are essential. Silence breeds suspicion and fuels anger. At its core, this is about respect. Respect for the law. Respect for lives. Respect for the office MPs hold temporarily but damage permanently when they act irresponsibly. Sri Lanka is navigating a fragile recovery. People have sacrificed, endured and adapted. What they should not have to tolerate is lawmakers who cannot exercise basic self control while asking the nation to be patient and disciplined.
Responsibility cannot be outsourced to statements or press releases. It must be lived. The Asoka Ranwala case is a mirror held up to Parliament. What lawmakers choose to see, and how they choose to respond, will determine whether this country continues to excuse misconduct or finally confronts it. The road to restoring trust is not paved with speeches. It begins with a simple act. Knowing when to stop. Knowing when to take responsibility. And knowing that power does not place anyone above the law.
