“Breaking news is constant these days. What is this breaking news? Some MPs support him. This minister supports him. But these are the same people who supported others before. G.L. Peiris stood with Chandrika for a while. Then, in 2011, he stood with Ranil Wickremesinghe. After that, he stood with Mahinda Rajapaksa. Then with Gotabaya Rajapaksa. Now he stands with Sajith Premadasa. You people are changing governments; they are changing sides. How is this happening? Do we want such farcical politics? Will such ugly politics build our country? Many people knocked on the door of the National People’s Power before joining those other sides. What did we do when they knocked on our door? We opened the door as usual. We even greeted them. We looked at them carefully. When we did, we saw the same old politics. We said, ‘Thank you very much, but you cannot enter our house.’ There was a lot of pressure around us. But what did we do? What this country needs today is principled politics. Some people jump for money. Some stay for money. They strangely say that our party is like a saloon door. These are not political parties; they are dens of swindlers. People come in and go out freely. This culture of party-switching politics must end. These are the last few days in which party-switching will be tolerated. As soon as the National People’s Power comes to power, we will bring laws to abolish the parliamentary seats of MPs who switch parties. Should politicians be allowed to switch sides and still come first in elections? We need a political movement that rejects defections in order to end this culture of party-switching.” [2024.08.10]
These words were spoken by none other than the current President, Anura Kumara Dissanayake, during the presidential election campaign on August 10, 2024.
Anura became President promising to end the culture of party-switching politics and create a new political culture. During the 2024 general election, the main slogan of the National People’s Power was to uproot weeds and plant flowers through a national Shramadanaya. Nearly 6.8 million people supported that vision. At the time, Anura declared that the opposition had been destroyed. Yet today, he is inviting MPs from that same “ruined opposition” to cross over and join the government in the name of building the country.
When Chandrika Kumaratunga came to power in 1994, she too faced a similar situation. She governed with only a narrow parliamentary majority. That crucial extra vote came from MP Chandrasekara of the Kandurata Janatha Peramuna. She knew that if Chandrasekara left, the government would collapse. She also depended on support from Ashraf’s Muslim Congress. If Ashraf withdrew support, the government would fall. Therefore, in 1999, she invited 10 UNP MPs from the opposition to join the government and stabilize it.
When Mahinda Rajapaksa became President in 2005, he too lacked a stable parliamentary majority. Half of the ruling coalition consisted of JVP MPs. He knew that if the JVP withdrew support, the government would collapse. As a result, he brought 17 UNP MPs from the opposition into the government to stabilize it.
Similarly, when Gotabaya Rajapaksa became President in 2019, he needed a two-thirds majority and encouraged defections from the Samagi Jana Balawegaya to secure it.
But Anura does not face such a crisis. After the introduction of the proportional representation system, this is the first time the people have granted a government such a decisive two-thirds majority. That mandate was given specifically to end the culture of party-switching and allow decisions to be made independently, without relying on MPs from other parties.
So why, despite receiving a two-thirds majority, is Anura now seeking opposition MPs?
It suggests that the government itself has admitted its own incompetence. It also suggests that the government recognizes that the Samagi Jana Balawegaya has capable individuals who can govern.
During the 2024 presidential election, Sajith Premadasa appointed an economic committee that included Harsha de Silva, Eran Wickramaratne, and Kabir Hashim. In response, Anura also appointed an economic committee consisting of Professor Anil Jayantha, Professor Harshana Suriyapperuma, and Sunil Handunnetti.
When the National People’s Power announced its economic committee, the Samagi Jana Balawegaya challenged them to a public debate on rebuilding the economy. The challenge was formally communicated in writing. However, the National People’s Power economic committee avoided participating in that debate.
People should have realized at that moment that Anura’s economic team was not prepared to lead the country’s economy.
Do you remember the press conference where Mahinda Rajapaksa and Gotabaya Rajapaksa appeared together after Gotabaya was announced as the presidential candidate? At that press conference, a journalist asked Gotabaya a question about the economy. Instead of answering, Gotabaya looked toward Mahinda, and Mahinda answered on his behalf. Sri Lankans should have understood at that moment that Gotabaya could not manage an economy. But they did not realize it. Believing he could lead the country, 6.9 million people voted for him. In the end, Gotabaya bankrupted the country and fled abroad. He eventually had to hand over power to Ranil Wickremesinghe because the SLPP lacked the expertise to manage the economy.
Is the same thing happening with Anura now? That increasingly appears to be the case.
After coming to power, Anura did not appoint the head of his previously announced economic committee as Finance Minister or Deputy Finance Minister. Later, Harshana Suriyapperuma, a member of the committee, was appointed Deputy Finance Minister, only to be removed later and appointed Secretary to the Ministry of Finance instead. Today, allegations are being raised regarding the disappearance of foreign loan records under his tenure as Finance Ministry Secretary.
Is this the fate of Anura’s economic committee?
In reality, Anura knew that the economic team presented by Sajith in 2024 was competent. Yet he misled the public by claiming that Harsha, Eran, and Kabir had also been part of Ranil Wickremesinghe’s economic team from 2015 to 2019 and were therefore responsible for destroying the country.
“Eran was in Ranil Wickremesinghe’s economic committee. Harsha was there too. The same people who formed Ranil’s economic committee then are now part of Sajith’s economic committee. These are the people who destroyed the country.” — Anura Kumara Dissanayake
The very members of Sajith’s economic committee, once accused of destroying the country, are now being invited by Anura to help run the government.
Anura, who was elected on a promise to end the culture of political defections, is now openly inviting Samagi Jana Balawegaya MPs to cross over and “work for the country.”
But that was not the mandate given to him.
If the government cannot run the country, then it should hold a general election and return power to the people.
That is the view expressed by a former JVP member, saddened by a government now searching for “weeds” from the Samagi Jana Balawegaya to keep its broken vehicle of governance running.
