by Arjuna Ranatunga
( April 26, 2015, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian)
Ports
Minister Arjuna Ranatunga in writing has urged President Maithripala Sirisena
and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe to be cautious when granting
nominations for the next election in order to ensure that corrupt individuals
are not allowed to contest at elections.
Full letter:
Honorable President Maithripala Sirisena,
Honorable Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe,
This letter comes forth as a request from a citizen who believes in
a political philosophy and a resulting culture, which disfavor party politics,
but rather upholds the progress of the country above all else.
My honest feeling is that the victory we achieved on 8th January,
under your leadership, is a remarkable collective political victory of all Sri
Lankans. As a sportsman and a member of the cricket world cup winning team in
the year 1996, I am proud to have become a stakeholder of that political
victory as well. I served as a frontline combatant against the authoritarian
rule and family based politics of the Rajapaksa’s, ignoring personal benefits
and even ignoring the life threats I received; I put my country’s welfare
before my own. The great joy and enthusiasm I experienced at the victory
secured on 8th January is far more than what I experienced on the day Sri Lanka
gained victory at the 1996 cricket world cup.
Honorable President and Honorable Prime Minister, the memories of
the defeated regime are of resentment and of a apprehension. One family,
through their narcissistic and immoral rule, has enjoyed our national resources
without limit or control. Their will was to consume all the existing resources
up to the limits of the sky, the earth and the ocean of the motherland. The
will of the family suppressed the will of all Sri Lankans. The country was
paralyzed by many forms of fear and violence, even though the war on terror had
ended. Personally, as a member of the parliament, I experienced tremendous
amount of pressure and frustration during that time of political rule. On
reflecting on the situation of the general public during that period, it is
evident that the stress and violence the past regime unleashed upon the general
public was severe and consequently had reached a tipping point both for the
oppressor and the oppressed by the time of the elections. On the 1st of
December at Viharamahadewi Park, we signed a collective agreement which pledged
an end to this dark age, prompting a positive future not only for us but also
for the generations to come with the support and participation of various
political parties and civil society collectives, disregarding all internal
contradictions. Coincidently, the 1st of December is my birthday. It was
remarkable that I had the opportunity to lay the foundation for the Maithri era
that gathered different political parties and movements on one platform for one
cause and for one challenge on a day that is very close to my heart.
Honorable President, Honorable Prime Minister, on the 8th of
January we established a milestone of a beginning of an ideal era in the
history of Sri Lankan politics. There is yet on the one hand the great task of
rebuilding the country, which was misdirected by family rule and family
business. On the other hand, there is also the great challenge of the political
parties and movements working together. We must also not forget that there are
political conspiracies and maneuvers, as expected, to paralyze our march
forward and to bring back ‘the family’ into the power. The distress I have
right now is that the partners and masterminds of that ongoing conspiracy are
not outside but amongst us. The henchmen who became the backscratchers of the
defeated regime, casino owners who looted and misused public money openly,
heroine and ethanol dealers, black market dealers and dealmakers are now
changing their moves. Now disguised in new outfits, their attempt is to get
close to you and to continue their same manipulative behavior. I kindly ask you
not to be deceived by them. The real call of the hour is to view the situation
with a discerning eye, leading us to make right choices.
Honorable President, Honorable Prime Minister, in my view the
upcoming election is critical in many ways. I believe more than all the other
factors, the upcoming election is crucial for the future of our country. The
entire future of the 8th January victory can be determined by the results of
the upcoming election. Therefore, I kindly request you not to permit
nominations for casino/ betting centre owners, gambling agents, heroine-
ethanol and black market dealers and other fraudulent persons for the upcoming
election. Furthermore, on the foundation of the same argument, I kindly request
you not to grant nominations for opportunistic and corrupt persons who cross
over from major parties when they are not able to secure nominations; in their
own parties. I honestly believe Honorable President, that you as the
Chairperson of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party, and Honorable Prime Minister, you
as the leader of the United National Party, are capable of standing this
request favorably.
Honorable President, Honorable Prime Minister, remarkably for the
first time in the Sri Lankan political history, today both of you are able to
move all parties and people in the North and the South towards one destined
objective. Even though both of you belong to two different political parties
and ideologies, today you are able to make decisions collectively; important
issues have been resolved as a result of this key alliance, understanding and
leadership. Accordingly, I kindly request you to make decisions and to take
action on the matter I have emphasized. For the betterment of the country, both
of you have been given the honorable duty of restricting opportunists and
corrupt individuals from entering into the country’s political sphere. I
believe it is meaningful to introduce criteria and guidelines for the process
of permitting nominations, which cover all political parties. Today, we must
not ask people to select “good” people as politicians, but provide the
opportunity for people to select the “best” people from good candidates. That
duty is mainly entrusted personally, to the good reasoning powers of the two of
you and dependent upon the power vested in your supreme designations. I believe
that in the upcoming parliamentary election this would be one of the best ways
to defeat the opportunists and corrupt persons. Finally, I kindly request you
not to let the victory and opportunity we achieved on 8th January be diminished
and wasted. I strongly believe that this step will sustain and add true meaning
to the victory of the common people and pave way to a civilized constructive
political culture that would ensure a great future to our motherland.
May the Triple Gem bless you!
Yours sincerely,
Arjuna Ranatunga
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