5th Column

My dear Sajith,

I am writing to you to congratulate you. If you are wondering why I am congratulating you when you lost two elections in quick succession, it is because you managed to retain the important job of Leader of the Opposition. Some were thinking, and others were hoping, that you might lose that title too.

This time you are out and about and in the public eye, not out in Yala, spotting leopards. The new Parliament has met only a few times. So far, you have curbed your tendency to make long-winded speeches at the beginning of every session. These are small steps, but can be considered as progress.

I hope you have sat down with your team to look at what went wrong for you. Even if we are to believe that Anura sahodaraya’s win was the result of a wave of support for him that you couldn’t quite counter, it still doesn’t explain the scale of the defeat the ‘telephone’ party suffered last month.

You went from 32 per cent of people voting for you at the presidential election to just 17 per cent 7 weeks later at the general election. Even at the last general election 4 years ago, when your party was brand new and you couldn’t campaign properly because of Covid, you polled more votes.

What is this talent you have for losing votes, Sajith? Is it the fault of your policies, the way your campaign was conducted, is it the people around you or is it just you? If you wish to have any hope of making an impact at the next election, you need to find out. My guess is it is all of the above.  

You made two big mistakes. One was to surround yourself with anyone and everyone who wanted to join your party. The ‘telephone’ party did have an image as a ‘cleaner’ version of the ‘elephant’ party. That was irreparably tarnished when you embraced all the political orphans who wanted to join you.

We had all kinds of riff-raff darkening the doorways of the ‘telephone’ party. There was the modern-day Laurel and Hardy duo in politics, GL and Dullas and also Nalaka. Dayasiri parachuted from the now defunct Blue party. There was even a time when racist Jayasumana was made to feel welcome!

You may have calculated that each of these people will bring you a block of votes. They probably did. That didn’t compensate for the loss of the ‘telephone’ party’s identity. That led to a massive loss of votes. People began saying that the only person missing in your party was Gota maama himself!

Some were quick to join you but others were quick to leave you. Harin and Manusha left early as did Diana. The Field Marshal and Rajitha followed. Thalatha was the last to go. You had the last laugh because none of them are in Parliament now – but the party’s popularity also fell with each defection.

Your other mistake was believing your father’s election strategy 35 years ago would be as useful today. He promised ‘Janasaviya’, a 2,500 rupee handout. You felt handing out smart classrooms and school buses and driving them into schools will win you votes.

You misread the mood of the electorate, even though you were given an early warning when you were chased away from the ‘aragalaya’. The people wanted a total change. The rathu sahodarayas realised this and reinvented themselves as the ‘maalimaawa’. You stuck to the same people, the same slogans.

That is why you are faced with a bigger headache now, naming four people for your National List seats. It is a thankless task. Whoever you choose, there will be many more who will be unhappy with your decision. Still, by not making your choices, you are again showing how indecisive you are.

It is funny how fate conspires against you, Sajith. It was your late father who introduced a clause to the Constitution as the 14th Amendment, some claim surreptitiously, allowing parties to nominate defeated candidates from the National List. Now, that has come to haunt you 35 years later.

There is Imthiaz, one of the few politicians who still commands respect, Hirunika who feels she must be there because she visited Gota’s home and also because she is female, and Eran who can add some value to your team.

Among your allies, Mano says he represents his community. Dullas, your ‘partner’ in the presidential selection is staking a claim too. There is also GL, who has been with Satellite, Mahinda maama, Uncle Ranil, Gota maama and is now with you. With choices like these, isn’t making a decision easy?

The best plea for a National List seat however came from one of your ertwhile backbenchers. I heard him say he would commit suicide if he wasn’t appointed. Now, if all of these contenders said the same and you didn’t appoint anyone, that would give you a fresh start, wouldn’t it, Sajith?

Yours truly,

Punchi Putha

PS: When Uncle Ranil lost two big elections, you began agitating in the Green camp saying he can’t win elections and must step down. If we apply the same standards, it is now time for you to go too. As much as the threat to Uncle Ranil came from you, beware of the challenges from within, Sajith!