The controversy in the UNP over the membership drive organised by the Premadasa Centre took a new turn by midweek when Venerable Elle Gunawansa Thera intervened as a political trouble shooter.
Left:
Sirisena Cooray, Right: Ven, Elle Gunawansa Thera
The protagonists in
the drama, UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe and former General Secretary Sirisena
Cooray were in regular contact with the monk, a prominent figure during the
Premadasa regime, who is trying to work out a compromise.
Mr. Ranil Wickremesinghe, after what was for him a successful meeting with the party’s policy-making Working Committee on Tuesday thought it prudent to talk to the monk, apparently because he felt an amicable settlement would be better than an unnecessary confrontation.
Mr. Wickremesinghe having known the close connection between Mr. Cooray and Gunawansa Thera made an unscheduled visit to the monk along with party chairman Karu Jayasuriya on Wednesday.
At the temple in Bauddhaloka Mawatha, the meeting took place behind closed doors where the UNP duo briefed the monk on the latest developments.
Mr. Wickremesinghe said he was prepared to participate in the Premadasa birth anniversary ceremony organised by the Premadasa Centre on June 29 and put forward two conditions for a settlement.
He said the agenda for the Premadasa day celebrations should be prepared jointly by Party General Secretary Gamini Atukorale and President Premadasa’s son, Sajith. Secondly, Mr. Cooray should call on him and extend the invitation to participate in the celebrations. The monk listened carefully and promised to discuss the matter with Mr. Cooray.
The monk told Mr. Wickremesinghe it was the duty of the Sangha to resolve conflicts that could affect the country.
He recalled the story of Dutugemunu and his brother Tissa and how the Sangha came to the rescue of Tissa.
When Tissa was taking refuge in the Aramaya the abode of monks Dutugemunu put all his men around the temple to prevent his brother from fleeing, but the monks draped Tissa in Saffron robes and carried him on their shoulders, as if they were carrying a corpse. Dutugemunu however learnt that it was his brother who was being carried by the Buddhist monks, and told his brother ‘’Tissa, don’t go on the shoulders of the monks”.
Having recalled this event from history. Gunawansa Thera told Mr. Wickremesinghe that monks played vital political roles at crucial times of the Sri Lankan history and that he would make every effort to resolve the present conflict in the UNP.
The monk later spoke to Mr. Cooray and discussed the situation outlining the conditions set out by the Opposition Leader for a settlement.
Mr. Cooray did not budge saying he would rather cancel the whole ceremony instead of accepting what Mr. Wickremesinghe had proposed.
Mr. Cooray told friends later that the UNP had no valid reason to oppose his plan. ‘’What wrong have I done to the UNP or to Mr. Wickremesinghe?’’ he asked.
Apparently unsuccessful, Gunawansa Thera did not call Mr. Wickremesinghe, after he spoke to Mr. Cooray.
He may have been thinking of trying again. But on Thursday morning, Mr. Wickremesinghe called Gunawansa Thera. He wanted to know how Mr. Cooray responded.
The monk asked whether he could send advisor Milinda Moragoda to discuss some issues.
Accordingly Mr. Moragoda went to the temple, and the monk told him it would take much more talking to resolve the matter.
A senior politician quipped that one Kissinger wouldn’t be enough to resolve this matter and there should be several. Perhaps that was why the UNP’s top lawyer and former Minister, K.N. Choksy, called Mr. Cooray.
He asked whether the membership drive of the Premadasa Centre could be stopped to settle the problem, pointing out that the party itself had launched a membership drive. But again the answer from Mr. Cooray was ‘no’.
Earlier, on Monday Mr. Cooray had a meeting with several UNPers on the membership drive.
Among those present were H.R. Piyasiri, Madurapala Ediriweera, Piyadasa Abeywickrama, Nandimitra Soysa, Asoka Danawansa de Silva and Ms. Buddhika Kurukularatne.
Mr. Piyasiri said he could enrol a large number of members from the Matara district, while Mr. Cooray briefed them on the aim of the Premadasa Centre.
Several provincial councillors who were expected to attend the meeting did not turn up.
Among the Municipal Council members, only Azad Sally turned up for the meeting.
It was revealed that party General Secretary Gamini Atukorale had undertaken to call all Municipal Councillors and tell them not to attend the Cooray meeting on Monday.
When some of them protested, Party Chairman and Mayor Karu Jayasuriya summoned eight of the councillors to the party office to tell them to keep away from Mr. Cooray’s meeting.
But the members also were tough and refused to bow saying Mr. Cooray had helped them in numerous ways. Finally, the leader of the party summoned them individually and told them they should keep away until a decision was taken by the Working Committee. To that the Councillors agreed.
Now Mr. Cooray and the key organisers of the Premadasa Centre have learnt that what was discussed on Monday at his residence with former MPs such as H.R. Piyasiri had been conveyed to the party hierarchy.
However, they were not quite sure who told all.
“Was it Nandimitra?” one asked. But Mr. Cooray said he was not worried since the discussion was an open one.
At another meeting, Cooray loyalists discussed how the UNP hierarchy had apparently taken cover behind a function organised by Sajith Premadasa in Hambantota. Since they had agreed to go for the Hambantota function, they could not attend the ceremony organised by the Premadasa Centre on June 23.
However it is now known that Sajith did not invite the UNP leader initially to open a Juki Training Centre at Bandagiriya in Hambantota since he felt that it was not a major event.
Sajith Premadasa’s invitation was given to UNP Chairman Karu Jayasuriya who accepted it. But towards the end of May, Sajith received a call from Sirikotha asking him to meet the party leader.
At Sirikotha that day Mr. Jayasuriya and General Secretary Atukorale were also present and the latter first spoke to Sajith and asked why he did not invite Mr. Wickremesinghe for the Bandagiriya function.
Sajith said he would gladly invite Mr. Wickremesinghe if he could come. Accordingly, an invitation was given to Mr. Wickremesinghe who promptly accepted it.
Sajith and the party leader also had a long talk, discussing, among other things, the functions of the Premadasa Centre and the setting up of a Premadasa Foundation.
At the UNP Parliamentary Group meeting Monday, there was much discussion on the proposed Premadasa Foundation and its link with the UNP. Opinions were divided on the participation of the UNP in the ceremony arranged by the Premadasa Centre. Hambantota district MP Mervyn de Silva said even the Premadasa family were opposed to the Premadasa Centre’s plans and he thought it was a plot by the government to divide the UNP.
Susil Moonesinghe said already there was talk of major divisions in the party and wanted to know whether there was a party within a party. Abdul Cader Hadjiar said the UNP had only one leader and that was Ranil Wickremesinghe. Nanda Mathew had a different view and said if anyone wanted to attend the meeting, they should be free to do so.
Mr. Hameed asked whether there was really a problem or whether a problem was just being created. He said if a meeting was being held those who wanted could attend it without making it an issue. ‘’If there was a ban and if the meeting is well attended then some will try to make it out that it is a defeat for the UNP.’’
During his 37 years in Parliament he had seen various developments within the party, Mr. Hameed said adding that personalities had come and gone and returned. He said the UNP was a well established party and could face any challenge. ‘’If this is a ploy of the President then we should not get tricked by it.’’ Gamini Lokuge and Rajitha Senaratne also said this issue should not be allowed to develop into a crisis. Mr. Wickremesinghe said the Working Committee would take a final decision on this issue.
Amidst these rumblings, the Working Committee met on Tuesday evening at Sirikotha with a big turnout. But there was not the drama that many expected. Though Mr. Cooray’s name was not directly mentioned, Mr. Wickremesinghe said party organisations could not sell tickets for any other foundations. He also said that there could not be parallel parties.
Mr. Wickremesinghe said that party bodies, and resources must be fully utilized to work for the party. If party resources were used for other organisations it would confuse the rank and file and mixed signals would be given.
He said if the UNP members were called upon to canvass memberships for one organisation and then another it would cause problems. Later, this might develop into another battle for preferences at election time.
If anybody wants assistance from the party, he should write and obtain prior permission, Mr. Wickremesinghe said.
In other words Mr. Wickremesinghe said there were so many foundations from the DS foundation to the Dissanayake foundation and if UNP members were to be drawn into raise funds for all, it might cause problems for the party.
He said the Gamini Dissanayake foundation had asked for the party’s assistance and similarly other foundations such as Dudley Senanayake, and Ranjan Wijeratne had done the same.
When the matter was put to the committee the party leader’s stand was unanimously endorsed.
At the beginning of the meeting, the leader introduced the new treasurer, Milroy Perera an architect.
He said he wanted to put the party finances in order. Mr. Perera’s appointment underlined the party leader’s policy of bringing forward professionals and fresh blood. Mr. Wickremesinghe’s thrust to give a new face to the party is also seen as a slap in the face for the old guard, whose views don’t carry much weight today.
It also could be considered as a slap on the old guard of the UNP because he had not listened to their dictates.
Some analysts say while Mr. Wickremesinghe had some respect for the people of the past, he may not necessarily accept them at high ranks in the future.
Some are displeased over Mr. Perera’s appointment since the treasurer’s post has traditionally gone to someone from the rank and file.
The Working Committee also discussed ways of raising more funds for the party, a membership drive and the overall prospects for the party.
Mr. Hameed said the UNP had a well linked network in the whole country with grassroots organisations, but he doubted the amount of support the UNP got from these organisations during the last local elections. He said this was a serious matter and needed careful study.
Uva Chief Minister Percy Samaraweera supporting Mr. Hameed’s views said that although in his Province they were able to win most the councils, yet in his own assessment the contribution from the party organisations was poor.
At the same meeting D. Swaminathan was appointed as Co-ordinating Secretary on ethnic matters. The responsibility entrusted to Mr. Swaminathan is to bring the grievances of the minorities to the notice of the national integration committee.
The move to get Mr. Swaminathan to a focal point is an attempt by the UNP leadership to woo the minorities more. But how much minority acceptance Mr. Swaminathan has is a debatable point. Mr. Swaminathan has been linked to business deals with several companies which have now been subjected to de-privatisation. Further the directorate of the Marigold Garments of which he is the chairman has a case pending before the Magistrate’s Court for non payment of EPF and ETF.
However at present, Mr. Atukorale is playing a prominent role in his efforts to keep Sirisena Cooray in check. At the same time some believe that a confrontation is brewing between the General Secretary and Secretary in charge of elections, Daham Wimalasena. Amidst all these events the UNP leader is likely to visit Britain as a guest of the government of Prime Minister Tony Blair next week.
After the break in Britain, Ranil loyalists hope he will be back with vigour to assert his leadership.
While the UNP was trying to resolve these and other internal matters government is nearing its third year in office with the economy still not producing expected results.
With most of the attention still focused on the ethnic conflict, the government is clearly upset over an interview given by Dr. Stanley Kalpage of the UNP to a Sinhala Weekly.
Minister G. L. Peiris had raised this issue at a meeting with all parties including the UNP on Thursday.
But UNP spokesman Tyronne Fernando said Dr. Kalpage was not even a member of parliament and pointed out that even a PA MP had told the Sinhala Commission that they wouldn’t support the package. Questions were also raised on a statement purported to have made by Dr. Peiris in London that the government had endorsed a federal set up for Sri Lanka. Dr. Peiris denied the reports but also challenged the UNP’s silence over some of the major issues in the ethnic conflict.
Dr. Peiris said the UNP was inactive even after the select committee on ethnic reforms agreed to accommodate some of the proposals made by it.
At the weekly Cabinet meeting on Wednesday the ministers considered proposals by four groups bidding for the Sri Lankan stall at Expo 98 exhibition in Portugal.
The Cabinet went through a proposal by Hubert Jayakody who had offered to do the job free. Mr. Jayakody is the father-in-law of Dulanjalee, daughter of President Premadasa.
The President who had earlier made some observations in favour of Mr. Jayakody’s proposal however rejected it at the Cabinet meeting after making few remarks of Mr. Jayakody’s past performances.
Thereafter, the Cabinet examined the second proposal which offered to set up the exhibition stall at a cost of US $ 200,000. After having read this proposal the President was in a dilemma as to what she should do regarding the Expo ’98 exhibition stall and finally decided to appoint a Cabinet Sub Committee to study all four proposals and make a decision.
Besides this the Select Committee also met on Thursday in Parliament with Minister G.L. Peiris presiding.
Dr. Peiris spelt out the proposed electoral reforms. He said the 198 members of the new Parliament would be elected on the basis of 50% on a first-past-the-post system and 50% on a PR system. The PA had preferred 65% on the first-past-the-post but had accommodated a UNP request for 50-50.
This, he said would help to reduce the warfare within political parties for preferential votes and also bring back the by-elections, so that the government in office could know the thinking of the people from time to time. Ministers Bernard Soysa and Indika Gunawardena said they did not support regional PR because it would be disadvantageous to small political parties and supported the retention of the National PR system.
Mr. Hameed said the proposals needed careful thought because reduction of seats means that the size of the Parliamentary Constituency would be bigger. Under such an arrangement no member of a minority community can be elected outside the North and the East. He welcomed the creation of the multi-member constituencies.
Mr. Hameed also suggested that rather than have one vote it would be better to have two votes so that a voter can vote for the candidate at his constituency level and also vote for one of the regional list candidates. This, he said, would also give the regional list candidates greater political clout since they would be elected. This proposal was supported by D. Siddarthan, MP who said that normally politicians who are popular with the people are not popular with their parties. This he said, therefore, was a good suggestion. Deputy Minister Wiswa Warnapala also said he supported this proposal because it would give the Regional List MPs greater recognition.
Mr. Hameed had a serious difference of opinion with the government proposal on the mode of election. Minister Peiris’s proposal is to have two different systems of elections and that is to elect directly 99 MPs from constituencies and 99 to be elected regionally on the PR system. Mr. Hameed said this was a departure from the tested German system and the basis for the election should be Proportional Representation. He said that as far as he was aware there was not a single practising democracy which had the proposed system. He urged that we follow the PR system where seats are determined after the counting of the votes in the whole country, and in the first instance, all who contested and won would be given their seats first. The balance remaining places would go to the regional candidates. Dr. Peiris said that two systems of elections are in the PA Manifesto and said that it would be good to have a new system even if it was not practised elsewhere.
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