Why Karu Jayasuriya Should Lead The
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Monday 16th January, 2006 11 oday, after successive defeats, the UNP has a better team man for man than UNP is in dire need of rehabilita- the PA-JVP-JHU combine. The “outstand- Ttion. The party is certain to lose ing component” of the party comprises almost all the gains they made in 2002 at highly qualified men who have succeeded the local government level at the forth- in their chosen fields of endeavour. All coming local government elections to be these men are political animals, to a held early his year. A destroyed party will Why Karu Jayasuriya much greater extent than Karu have to be rebuilt from grass roots level Jayasuriya. But Ranil kept all his politi- upwards. When the UNP was defeated in cal animals caged and sedated in fear that 1994, they had 94 MPs. Now they have just they would out run him. All Karu J has to 67 two of whom they have lost, bringing do is to take the UNP’s political animals down the number to 65. The UNP’s base off the tranquilisers and release them among the Sinhala public – its main base from their cages. Ranil kept his best men since its inception under D.S.Senanyake, Should Lead the UNP locked up because of his feeling of inse- has been badly eroded and needs to be curity. But Karu Jayasuriya earned prof- rebuilt. The UNP needs to win over the its for his company for over three decades minorities alienated by Ranil by promoting the best and most compe- Wickremesinghe’s mishandling of the tent men. He is used to a culture where LTTE. the best rises to the top and he knows that Today,because he fell foul of the LTTE, his own survival depends on allowing the Ranil has lost the support of not just the best to rise to the top. He is used to sitting northern Tamils, but the Up Country among competent men and getting them Tamil groups as well, which now tend to to do things without feeling that his own follow the line set by the LTTE. Ranil position would be endangered because of Wickremesinghe’s disastrous policy of them. ignoring the Sinhala voter while doing everything to woo the minority votes has ‘Outstanding component’ to be reversed. The policy should be to That is what the UNP should expect of woo the Sinhala voter and the minority Karu Jayasuriya – to MANAGE the “out- voter together. Even Anton Balasingham standing component” of the party into has stressed the need for the Sinhala victory. Karu should be the first among leader they negotiate with, to have the equals in a powerful shadow cabinet capacity to carry the Sinhala vote with appointed by him from among the UNP’s him, otherwise they would be negotiating outstanding leaders. Those who support with someone who does not have the Ranil may say at this stage, “What a bril- backing of the public to implement what- liant idea! Lets get Ranil to be the first ever solution is arrived at. among equals in a powerful shadow cabi- net!” I wish to categorically state that Communication with LTTE The UNP also needs to re-establish only Karu will be able to implement their lines of communication with the something like that successfully. Ranil LTTE in order to take the tortuous but has an ingrained inability to make deci- necessary peace process forward. Some sions or to allow anyone else to make may argue that there is no point in talk- them. ing peace with the LTTE because they are Whether in Opposition or in govern- a military organization. But some day, ment, he never allows anyone to do any- there will be peace. Whether that peace thing. Even if Ranil changes his ways will be achieved through war or through and gives the “outstanding component” negotiation is still to be seen. But ten of the party a free hand to win power, years from now, Prabhakaran will be old. they may find that they have fought long Twenty years from now, Prabhakaran and hard to topple the PA under Ranil but could well be dead, senile or bed-ridden. when it comes to ruling the country after So with time, there will definitely be Karu Jayasuriya and Ranil Wickremesinghe victory,those given precedence over them are either smilingly incompetent rosy changes. The Sinhalese and Tamils are just a bonus. There is no way that the community figure who had relinquished before it. He was never a popular man. At not going to be at each other’s throats for UNP can lose among the Sinhalese and his duties in the private sector to take up the 1993 Provincial Council elections and cheeked youths or doddering old gentle- ever. Hence, it is necessary for the UNP to hope to run a successful government by government service under J. R.J ayawar- the 1994 Parliamentary elections he lost men whom Ranil had picked off the pen- establish those lines of communication winning among the minorities. dene. But at that time, Karu J did not his Biyagama seat while being the sion queue. This happened in December with the LTTE which Ranil evince any interest in politics and had incumbent Prime Minister. The people of 2001 and would have happened on a much Wickremesinghe disrupted through his Talented People declined the offer. After he left the pri- his electorate did not give a toss that they grander scale, had Ranil won the last arrogance. Quite apart from all this, the Man for man, the people in the UNP vate sector in 1992, President Premadasa had produced a Prime Minister! In fact, Presidential election. There is absolutely UNP needs to start fulfilling the role of are superior to those in the PA. The prob- appointed Karu as the Chairman of the the reason why Ranil shifted Karu no point in anyone exerting himself to an opposition party – a role which Ranil lem is with the leader. The UNP consists co-coordinating committee for the EXPO Jayasuriya to Gampaha and went to bring Ranil Wickremesinghe into power Wickremesinghe neglected. The JVP and of some very talented people with terri- 92 Trade exhibition. President Colombo is because he feared getting less because he cannot run a government the JHU benefited enormously from the ble horoscopes resulting in their being Premadasa had wanted 1001 foreign visi- preferential votes than some of the local even if power is handed to him on a plat- UNP’s inactivity. To salvage the UNP, we led by the most incompetent man tors but something like 5,600 had attend- UNP politicians in Gampaha. Just mov- ter. In contrast to this, Karu Jayasuriya need a man of immense proportions. So amongst them – not by the most capable. ed. Hotels from Kandy to Bentota had ing to Colombo was not enough, he had to has produced results all his life by daunting is the task ahead that people This situation needs to be remedied. The been booked out to accommodate the remove Karu Jayasuriya before going entrusting a job to be done to the best look at the UNP and think, is there a man reformist MP’s have fixated on Karu inflow of potential buyers. Later, there because there was the danger of man available. And the leaders of the among them who is up to the task? Jayasuriya and I think that this is the President Premadasa appointed Karu him getting less votes than Karu UNP can trust him where they cannot While there is a battle royal churning best option the UNP has. Karu came into Jayasuriya as the Ambassador to Jayasuriya in Colombo! trust Ranil. If you do well under Ranil within the UNP at present, some feel that politics, after completing a very distin- Germany, a post he held until the change you are doomed. Milinda Moragoda Ranil will be able to overcome this crisis guished career in the private sector. of government in 1994. Cultivating minority votes would have got into cabinet in the first as well the same way he did the others. When he relinquished his duties in the At this stage, someone may interrupt Ranil, has always been seriously out of round if he had come last in the Colombo For example, he managed to stave off the private sector to take up a position under me and say, alright, alright, Karu was step with the electorate, which is proba- district. He was made a non-cabinet min- crisis in April 2004 by giving the main President Premadasa, he was the undoubtedly a success in the private sec- bly why he fixated on cultivating the ister because he came in at second place reformists posts in the party and other Chariman of the C. W. Mackies Group of tor but does that mean that he will be a minority vote because the minority vote after Ranil. goodies. The name being most often men- Companies and had held the position of success as the leader of the political can be negotiated from inside an air-con- tioned in this regard being that of Tissa Chairman, Director and Chief Executive party? ditioned room and is delivered en bloc Drama Attanayake, who had led the reformists of no less than 52 companies. He is not without Ranil having to exert himself. There is also the need to restore the in 2004 and then accepted the post of just a man who has been seeing All the ground level work is done dignity of the position of eader of the Deputy General Secretary and quietened visions, he has been actually by the minority leaders.