Back to
the village: Rukman’s plan for UNP
The UNP base from its inception
has been in the village. Till about the 1960s the cities
were controlled by the left parties. After that it changed
and we had the village and we took over the cities.
But since late we found that at the village levels things
are becoming very dormant. That is the problem that
we have to identify and rectify. That I think should
be done by building up a leadership from the grass root
level, electoral level, and district level. You have
to give them a hearing in the party, power in the party.
Their voice should be heard and their views respected.
By Chandani Kirinde
Rukman Senanayake, the grandson of
D.S. Senanayake who was the founder of the UNP –
will formally take over as the Party’s new Chairman
on November 19.
![](../images/nws1.jpg) |
Rukman Senanayake who will take
over as Chairman of the UNP on November 19. Pic
by Ranjith Perera. |
In an interview with The Sunday Times,
Mr. Senanayake said his new job was a “great responsibility”,
that he would be an “active chairman” and
would do his best to revitalise the UNP at the grass
root levels.
Following are excerpts of the interview:
How does it feel to be the
Chairman of a party founded by your grandfather 60 years
ago?
It’s a great responsibility.
I am very thankful for having been given this responsibility.
It is my job to see that organisations at grass root
levels are strengthened, revitalised and forms a sort
of a bridge between the hierarchy and grass root level
leadership. This I hope to do with the consent of the
UNP leadership.
What do you think went wrong
with the UNP down the line? Today it appears as if the
party had isolated the rural masses who once formed
its voter base?
The UNP base from its inception has
been in the village. Till about the 1960s the cities
were controlled by the left parties. After that it changed
and we had the village and we took over the cities.
But since late we found that at the village levels things
are becoming very dormant. That is the problem that
we have to identify and rectify. That I think should
be done by building up a leadership from the grass root
level, electoral level, and district level. You have
to give them a hearing in the party, power in the party.
Their voice should be heard and their views respected.
The UNP was a multi ethnic
party that embraced all the national communities. Is
it still the case?
The UNP was formed with the participation
of the Ceylon National Congress, the Sinhala Maha Sabha,
the Tamil Congress and other political parties. At the
time there was a great need to unite the entire nation
and this was successfully accomplished under the guidance
of D.S. Senanayake and since then the UNP had always
kept it that way.
What about representation,
say for example in Parliament, where only few members
of the minority communities are accommodated by the
UNP?
That is because of this electoral
system where minority political parties have emerged
and they are holding on claiming their vote base. This
has somewhat eroded the vote base of both the UNP and
also the SLFP. But it has definitely affected the UNP
even more because the UNP always had a nearly 100 per
cent minority support. That is not because of the lack
of commitment on the part of the UNP but because of
the emergence of minority parties.
You are the Chairman of
the party. Will your position be that of a figurehead
or will you be entrusted with responsibilities?
I do not hope to be a figurehead chairman.
I will be an active chairman. The party leader wants
me to be actively involved and I will devote a lot of
time for party activities.
You have been someone who
has advocated the concept of a national government between
the two main parties – the SLFP and the UNP?
No, not a national government. What
I really advocated was and this is also my personal
view since the 1980s that this country cannot afford
to have this traditional government and opposition form
of governance going on.
The multi party system must stay as
it is essential for a viable democracy with each party
having its contribution towards it. But after the people’s
verdict at elections, you have to form what is called
an “all party government”.
It’s not something you can do
over night. You have to change the entire structure.
A similar system existed in the State Council, where
Mr. Senanayake was a Minister from one party, S.W.R.D.
Bandaranaike was a Minister from another party and G.G.
Ponambalam was from another. We walked united hand in
hand to gain independence for our motherland and that
achievement was made possible because of agreement.
Is such an arrangement viable
today?
It is viable. But a lot of commitment
is needed from both the parties. People must be made
aware that it is not the dissolution of one party at
the expense of the other or a subjugating of one party
by another, but is a form of collective responsibility.
I personally believe that we have
to take it step by step see how practical it is and
accordingly change the constitution to make it a workable
system. That I think is the best solution for the country.
Is the recently concluded
SLFP/UNP talks and the decision to sign an MOU a step
in that direction?
These particular discussions were
centred on identifying six major issues and an agreement
was reached. An MOU will be signed soon. What then needs
to be done is to evolve a structure by President Mahinda
Rajapaksa and UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe. What
the delegations have done is given a general outline
of the structure. If it is to be workable, the two leaders
will have to give it meaning.
There must be some concerns
that the UNP will lose its role as the main opposition
and the JVP might occupy that position.
The structure we are talking about
is that while remaining in the opposition to also have
a working arrangement with the government on major issues.
Whether we are going to do that within the government
or outside the government is something both leaders
must decide.
The two leaders will have to work
out the details. We are the second largest party in
Parliament and our main responsibility is to be an effective
and constructive opposition.
How long do you think it
will take for the UNP to get back on its feet and return
to power after the electoral setbacks it has suffered
in recent years?
In 1956 we lost very badly and got
only eight seats in Parliament. Then people said the
UNP is finished and that the final nail has been put
in its coffin. But within four years the UNP was back
forming the government in March 1960. So if you properly
organise things, you can come back. I don’t think
you can destroy this party. Its base is well entrenched
withinn the people and what needs to be done is to motivate
them.
The party has been having
its share of internal problems. What is the position
now?
When a party gets defeated at elections
these things are normal. Now discussions have taken
place and mending of fences has been done. Some small
problems remain but there is nothing that cannot be
sorted out. My job is also to see that all these groups
are brought in and their views are heard and bring about
unity.
What about rebuilding confidence
in the leadership of the party?
In 1970 when Dudley Senanayake was
defeated, problems emerged within the UNP. Mr. Senanayake
and J.R. Jayewardena worked together and took the party
forward again, despite differences of opinion among
them. Similarly the differences can be worked out.
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