Sunday Times 2
A tribute to a beautiful spirit and a consummate administrator
View(s):K.H.J. Wijayadasa
K.H.J. Wijayadasa, a distinguished member of the former Civil Service and secretary to two Presidents of Sri Lanka, died on August 17, 2023. He was 87.
He was the secretary to President R. Premadasa from 1989 to 1993 and thereafter to President D.B. Wijetunga until 1994. Prior to that, he was the secretary to Prime Minister Premadasa from 1984 to 1988. A leading light of the Sri Lankan Public Service, Mr. Wijayadasa excelled at the highest level in his long and brilliant career in a diverse field of governance. Prior to his elevation to the highest office in the public service, he served as secretary to the Ministry of Highways, additional secretary to the Ministry of Housing, Construction, and Local Government, and additional secretary to the Ministry of Agriculture and Lands.
Early in his career, he excelled in key sectors of development administration, such as provincial administration, communication, land, agriculture, housing, construction, highways, and environment. His outstanding performance in many of these positions enhanced his profile as an effective administrator, and the challenging situations he managed helped him to sharpen his intellect and capacity to work and produce sustainable outcomes.
Mr. Wijayadasa was a consummate administrator whose remarkable performances in some challenging and difficult situations still reverberate in the annals of the Sri Lanka Public Service. During his tenure as the Government Agent, the Polonnaruwa District produced the highest yields per acre and was adjudged the best in the island during Prime Minister Dudley Senananyake’s Green Revolution of 1965–1970. As the Government Agent of Kegalla, the most entrenched district during the first youth revolt of 1971, he coordinated, under trying conditions, the government’s efforts to restore normalcy and ensure uninterrupted provision of essential services to the population. As the first chairman of the Environment Authority, he was responsible for introducing the global standards and practices of environment management and developing the fledgling agency to be a key player in sustainable development initiatives in Sri Lanka. As the Director of the ‘Gam Udawa’ Programme of President Premadasa, he is credited with conceptually transforming an event that began as a celebration in a village in a remote district into a comprehensive regional development programme of massive scale and making it an event in the national calendar with the participation of all ministries. More significantly, during the height of the ethnic conflict and at a time when the nation’s international relations were also strained, as the Secretary to the President who was also the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces, he did an awe-inspiring job of organising consultations with India and parties with conflicting interests such as the LTTE and the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) and was responsible for the organisation of meetings and consultations, preparation of sensitive background documentation and draft agreements, and the like. A compendium of these achievements should make an impressive dossier on the life and accomplishments of a rare public servant. In recognition of his distinguished public service, he was elevated to the rank and dignity of Deshamanya in 2005.
Probably the most demanding assignment in his career was directing the annual ‘Gam Udawa’ celebrations of Mr. Premadasa. ‘Gam Udawa’ was an annual event under the Village Reawakening Programme of the Ministry of Housing. Under Mr. Wijayadasa’s visionary leadership, it soon evolved into a comprehensive regional development programme of unprecedented scale. It demanded months of planning by a multi-disciplinary team. He was responsible for identifying the health, education, housing, infrastructure, and social welfare needs of the whole province and determining the priorities of the region. The time-bound implementation was coordinated for greater impact at the ground level. At every step of the process, Mr. Premadasa, as minister, prime minister, or president, was intimately involved in leading, guiding, and monitoring the process. When the celebrations began, Mr. Premadasa took up residence on the premises and was actively involved for around 24 hours in the daily management of the event. Every little patch of grass that had escaped the lawn mower in that vast expanse of land, a skewed flag post, and a fused bulb caught his eye. In a larger context, this was symbolic of his art of management. He had mastered the strategy of managing huge projects through details. When details were in place, the project had a way of falling into place—an approach I have yet to see with any other leader. At the end of the day, Wije came out with flying colours and earned applause from the army of assistants that he commanded. He graciously took a bow and got busy planning next year’s celebration.
With his affable ways, he demonstrated a strong determination and belief in possibility. Most responsibilities were easily within his competence. This was a resolve that influenced his success at work, his achievements, and his life in general. Despite these high achievements and his ingrained defiance, Mr. Wijayadasa remained an unassuming and humble person. In the eyes of his staff, he was always the kindest, nicest and gentlest manager. To those around him and many who knew him, he was ‘Wije’. A unique quality in a hierarchical service is when power and humility are observed as non-overlapping magisteria.
Wije was born to parents who were both school principals in January 1936. He had his primary and secondary education at Dharmapala Vidyalaya, from where he entered the University of Ceylon, Peradeniya. After graduating with honours in geography, he entered the prestigious Sri Lanka Civil Service in 1959 and placed third in the order of merit. In 1972, he was offered a scholarship to the University of Oxford to pursue a postgraduate diploma in economic development. He had also attended training at the British Broadcasting Corporation and the Royal Institute of Public Administration in the United Kingdom.
Having retired with the knowledge that his life’s work had been completed, he spent his leisure hours on activities that were close to his heart. Of so many, his main interests were the Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi Development Fund, the development of Dharmapala Vidyalaya, his alma mater, his garden, and feeding and caring for stray cats in his neighbourhood. Wije was a devout Buddhist and invested much time and effort to mobilise resources for the improvement of Sri Maha Bodhi. The renovated Ranveta around the Sacred Bodhi Tree, the reinforcement of the granite ‘Prakara’ around it, the conservation and development of ‘Maha Maluwa’, and the environmental improvements of the surrounding area of its precincts bear testimony to his efforts as its chairman.
Despite the uncertainties of life at our age, Wije was fortunate to have lived a long and fruitful life. Yet to Nimalka, Wije’s beloved wife, this is a personal loss that will resonate for a long time in her heart. In the absence of her brother, who is a resident abroad, Charmalee and her genial husband Gihan took loving care of their father during his final illness together with Nimalka. It is our wish that Nimalka, Charmalee, Gihan, Uditha and Niru will have the strength and courage to overcome their great sense of loss. His family and his friends will miss him dearly. Yet, his memory will long remain a part of our being.
Disa Weerapana