Sunday Times 2
Political power and a little bit of publicity to serve the people
View(s):His day starts at the break of dawn, attired in a crisp white national, Jayantha de Silva opens the doors to his Borella office by 5 o’clock. Soon it is thronged by residents who’ve come to tell him of their woes. “The first thing I do is to offer them a cup of tea,” he tells us. “A cup of tea and a friendly welcome simmer down their burning heads.”
Jayantha Silva explains the beginnings of Pragna Pradeepa' foundation
Many of these residents are day labourers, and soon after the early morning chat they will be off to work, without missing out on precious working hours or having to put leave to approach their neighbourhood politico.
“I’m confident that I can call anyone in my electorate by name. You don’t get that by staying at home,” he tells us. He may be one of the very few politicians who go by yesteryear’s trade of mingling with the people and working at the grassroots level. For many politicians of today, this would be something secondary and a face on a roadside billboard more favourable, but Jayantha de Silva believes that for politicians like himself, looking into the very basic necessities of his people takes prime importance.
Being a student of Ananda College, he first raised his voice for a public concern when a wave of opposition resisted a move by the college to incorporate students of a nearby evening school — the Olcott Vidyalaya — as its own. “I was one of the first to raise my voice and urge the authorities to go ahead with the plan and let these students have an opportunity of joining Ananda College,” says Mr. de Silva. Eka sereppuwai, kalisam kattai, one slipper and a pin to hold their trousers up was the only possessions these children had.
Later, he thought it best to raise funds and distribute books to the children and the gratitude he saw in their eyes pushed him to instigate the ‘Pragna Pradeepa’ foundation. “It wasn’t even about the books at the beginning, it’s the fact that children love to get gifts from someone,” he tells us.
The foundation has come a long way over a span of 25 years, and is synonymous with his name. Carrying forward the initiative into the prisons, Mr. De Silva has handed over a thousand books to the children of inmates, who too are confined by prison walls due to no fault of their own. Kudu kaarayage lamaya kudu kaarayek karanna one nehene, we mustn’t let the child of a drug peddler become a drug peddler, he tells us.
Having been elected to the Colombo Municipal Council in 1976, Mr. de Silva went on to contest for his seat in 1983, 1989, 1999 and 2014. The Borella electorate was taken up by Mr. de Silva after UNP heavyweight and former speaker of the Parliament, M. H. Mohamed. In Mr. de Silva’s view, the Mohameds did serve the electorate but from a different approach to what he is carrying out right now.
“I’m more of a social worker rather than a politician, and I only use my power to improve the living standards of people,” he tells us. Be it a wedding, funeral or attaining of age functions in the area, Jayantha De Silva will be there surrounded by people, wearing a big smile.
Being lauded by the Sarvodaya Movement, and awarded the Desha Shakthi title by the Sri Lanka Social Welfare Peace Foundation, Mr. de Silva is also a recipient of the Kciko Muragahaki award.Accepting that his entry into politics was to gain power, he goes on to explain that in his view some sort of power is necessary to be a good social worker. “There is less ability to serve without power and you need it.”
The only naysayers of his social work are his relatives abroad. “You see, apart from the salary I get as a politician I turn to my relatives to fund my projects. I put them under a lot of trouble,” he laughs.
“I do love a bit of publicity as well, but I work hard for it,” he fixes his grey hair and lets out a smile. Many a time would he step into newspaper offices aiming to spread the word of his social service. In a day and age where politicians get easy publicity for a few statements made in public — a joke or two – Mr. de Silva takes time to build his own publicity.
“Politicians of yesteryear made people their foundation and would even know their heartbeat. In the days of D.S. Senanayake, Dudley Senanayake and M.D.H. Jayawardene, politicians were honest statesmen,” he recalls. Mr. de Silva may not come to mind when pondering of economic policies, legislative changes or development projects, but in his own little ways he has captured the hearts of the people of his electorate and goes about his campaign “the old school” way. For him, this is his life’s calling and he believes that micro-level politics needs to transcend into parliament, as he now focuses on the parliamentary elections.
For over three decades, Jayantha de Silva has worked hard to become the common man’s politician and is proud of his success. “You want to know another secret to my success… I’m a bachelor”, he laughs.
- S.J.