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We are back to a ‘One Man Show’, the voter is wise to this
View(s):Sajith Premadasa has long been the heir apparent of the United National Party (UNP).
Many attempts, not so much by him, but others who wanted the ouster of the incumbent Leader, Ranil Wickremesinghe, have pushed him to the fore to take the mantle of leadership. As a compromise he was made Deputy Leader.
Push came to shove last year when the party leadership was pressured to make him the Presidential candidate.
It wasn’t the best induction to high intensity national politics for the young politician, son of former President R. Premadasa. He was left a bad loser.
The die was however cast. He was pushed even further to lead the UNP, or break away. He opted for the latter when he couldn’t succeed in removing the incumbent. He took away with him a large number of UNP MPs and supporters who feel he can deliver them salvation.
Will he succeed next week, or will he be the sacrificial lamb yet again, is left to be seen.
Why do you feel confident that the Samagi Jana Balavegaya (SJB) can win a majority of the seats at next week’s general elections?
For too long have we been dependent on looking for solutions coming from an individual. We live in a fast changing society with complex challenges to deal with as we have recently experienced with Covid-19. Political teams are needed to steer the country. The team we are running for this election is made up of politicians with more competence, experience and vision than any other party. It also includes new and young people.
Despite the limitation in post-Covid campaigning and the obvious disadvantaged access to electronic media, my team and I have travelled throughout the country taking our message.
Are you realistically expecting a majority of the seats, given the fact that the trend is for the party that won the presidential election to win the parliamentary election as well?
The current situation also provides the voter plenty of time to make a judgment on the performance of the president and cabinet over nearly 9 months.
Usually on the assumption of a presidency the international rating agencies would reaffirm or upgrade ratings of the country. Instead Sri Lanka was downgraded. More recently other governments who are economic partners have expressed concern on economic policy direction. It appears that we are back to a “one man show” which could have disastrous health, economic and social consequences. The voter is wise to this.
Hasn’t the split in the UNP vote further reduced the SJB’s chance of winning more seats?
No. We have left behind the poor performance, the indecision, the bond scam, the corrupt practices of the past to forge a new beginning. We have understood and are in solidarity with the vast majority of UNP voters. We truly are the inheritors of the political philosophy championed by D S Senanayake of one nation, respect for diversity and equal opportunity for all.
You broke away from the UNP, challenge the UNP and want UNP votes. Even the Courts have held the SJB is a different party recognized by the Elections Commission contesting, inter alia, against the UNP. Are you not at least partly responsible for the liquidation of the UNP?
John F. Kennedy once said “those who make peaceful revolution impossible make violent revolution inevitable.” The UNP leadership has consistently stifled proponents of genuine, dynamic change within it in favor of personal loyalty and control. In that sense, it is the UNP leadership that liquidated their own party, by refusing to accept and empower the new generation of politicians that has arisen to bring about reform. The creation of the SJB to represent this new generation is therefore the best possible response to such a situation.
Some of your frontline leaders make it look like the SJB’s objective is to win ‘Sirikotha’, and then the Government. How far is this the case?
In a political campaign many things are said and many inferences are drawn. We are campaigning to form the next government. We believe that our programme and our team have the best possibility of success. We need to stabilize the volatile situation immediately. The global economy will contract by 4.9% in 2020. Sri Lanka’s budget deficit will be near 10% of GDP, foreign reserves will be dangerously low, the debt repayments in 2021 will be a challenge. In 2020 the debt repayments were possible due to the favorable reserve position we maintained in 2019. Our first priority is macroeconomic stability. We will work with India, China, EU, USA, Japan and others including the World Bank, ADB, IMF, AIIB and other multilaterals. Our strength has been international relations. We regained GSP+ and had the ban on fish exports lifted through diplomacy in difficult times. We will regain and protect Sri Lanka’s export markets and improve the environment for business and the private sector. This will create jobs and incomes. Meanwhile we are committed to easing the burden on the poor through targeted social welfare.
In hindsight, would not the timing of your bid for the Presidency have been better in 2025?
There is never a convenient time to run for president, and conditions could be so different in 2025 that to speculate on it is irrelevant. What is relevant, however, is that the candidacy of Gotabaya Rajapaksa posed and continues to pose a real danger to accountability and good governance. Ranil Wickremesinghe could not have made the case against the Rajapaksas as effectively.
The caretaker government has timed the release of a committee report claiming that as Minister, you misused funds from the Central Cultural Fund for your Presidential campaign. Your comments?
I vehemently reject such assertions. Why have they brought this issue up in the final week of the election campaign ? Their political motives are very clear – to throw mud at our performance and vigorous campaign.
The principles of natural justice have been completely violated. How could a commission write a report without consulting the parties concerned? It’s shocking as its Chairman is a retired judge. It is also noted that another member of the commission is the head of the legal unit of the President’s office.
I was Minister of Cultural Affairs from December 2018 for a short period, even though the discredited report refers to the period 2016-2019. It is clear that this is a conspiracy hatched by the present government and the remnant clique of the UNP to shutdown the speedy advancement of the SJB. The UNP clique is driven by fear and unable to accept their fate and the wave of support for us.
Whether your coalition wins or loses, are you willing to be part of a National Government with the UNP, SLPP, JVP, TNA or any other willing parties?
We expect to form a government. We will be opposed to assisting or legitimizing any party that seeks to dismantle accountability measures, such as the Right to Information Act, the 19th Amendment and the checks and balances on the Executive President that have been such important contributions towards creating a more just society.
Do you feel your father faced any specific challenges that made his political struggle difficult? Do you think you are facing similar challenges?
My father rose from amongst the common people in the city of Colombo to the highest executive office in the Country. He carried on his shoulders the aspirations and dreams of the masses while breaking many barriers on his journey. The Sri Lankan political power structure as demonstrated by the first rows in Parliament, namely a family on one side, and a small clique of corrupt loyalists on the other side, want to obstruct our new team. We will embark on a new journey to build a corruption free, modern society that will treat everyone equally.