“Thaaththa,” Bindu Udagedera asked, “what is all this fuss about Uncle Ranil?”
“Well,” said Bindu’s father Percy, “I think some of the greens want him ousted...”
“But haven’t they said that for some time now?” Bindu wanted to know.
“Yes, they have,” Percy recalled, “but they haven’t been able to do that...”
“So, what are they doing now?” Bindu asked.
“Now, it has almost become like a tradition in the green party...” Percy said.
“What tradition is that?” Bindu inquired.
“Whenever the green party loses an election, they want Uncle Ranil replaced with someone else...” Percy observed.
“And who will be replacing him, thaaththa?” Bindu was curious.
“That is part of the problem, Bindu...” Percy tried to explain.
“Why do you say that, thaaththa?” Bindu asked.
“Why, Bindu each of the contenders have their own share of problems...” Percy declared.
“So, who are these contenders, thaaththa?” Bindu asked.
“Why, there is Uncle Karu, of course...” Percy said.
“I thought he said a lot of ‘boru’ and went with a lot of ‘horu’ to the other side...” Bindu remembered.
“He did,” Percy said, “but now he’s back...”
“And they want to reward him for what he did by offering him the leadership?” Bindu was surprised.
“Well,” Percy said, “some people in the party seem to think that he is a better bet than Uncle Ranil...”
“But is he the only contender, then?” Bindu wanted to know.
“No, of course not...” Percy said, “there are many others...”
“Then the race must be very interesting,” Bindu said, “so, who are these people?”
“Why, there is always Seeni Bola...” Percy said.
“I thought he had lost his civic rights because he couldn’t keep his opinions to himself...” Bindu said.
“I suppose that is taken care of now,” Percy said, “which is why he contested the recent elections in the Central province...”
“But he lost even his own electorate by a massive margin, didn’t he, thaaththa?” Bindu asked.
“He did,” Percy agreed, “but that hasn’t discouraged him from wanting the party leadership...”
“So,” Bindu said, “he thinks that even though he cannot win his own electorate, he can lead the green party to victory in the entire country...”
“In fact,” Percy pointed out, “he even believes that he will be able to take Mahinda maama’s job...”
“Then, good luck to him,” Bindu said, “but is he the only other contender?”
“Of course not,” Percy said, “there are at least two more...”
“And who are they?” Bindu asked.
“Why,” Percy said, “there are those who believe that they should lead the party because it is part of their heritage...”
“What do you mean by that?” Bindu was puzzled.
“Why, Bindu,” Percy said, “remember, there was a time when the green party was called the ‘Unge Nedeyange Pakshaya’...”
“But who are those who want to claim the leadership as part of their heritage?” Bindu demanded.
“Why, there is the grandson of the father of the nation...”
“But thaaththa,” Bindu asked, “didn’t he too have a fight with the Old Fox and leave the party?”
“Not only did he leave the party he even formed his own party,” Percy recalled, “but that is no crime because even Uncle Lalith and Uncle Gamini did so some time ago...”
“That is because they were having a fight with the boss of that time...” Bindu said.
“And it is the son of that boss who is the other contender in the leadership battle...” Percy observed.
“So, thaaththa,” Bindu declared, “with all these people fighting for his job, Uncle Ranil must be a very worried man...”
“I don’t know whether Uncle Ranil is worried,” Percy said, “but I can imagine someone else being very worried about Uncle Ranil losing his job...”
“Who is that, thaaththa?” Bindu wanted to know.
“Why, Mahinda maama must be very worried about it,” Percy said. “because the day Uncle Ranil loses his job and is replaced by someone else, Mahinda maama will begin to worry about losing his job...”
Bindu didn’t quite know what to say to that.