This victory is a golden opportunity to show the world that they have talent and skills to run this nation. This is a golden opportunity to display their true patriotism and loyalty to this nation.
by Dr SLM Rifai
SLPP supporters are celebrating the presidential election victory in many parts of Sri Lanka. Especially in the Southern provinces of Sri Lanka. This presidential election has polarised Sri Lankan communities very badly.
This victory may have sent some shocking waves across some section of Sri Lankan people. Tamil and Muslim voted overwhelmingly to Sajith Premadasa in north and East, expecting that over 35% of Sinhalese will vote for SP and yet, Sinhalese people decided to vote Gota. There is nothing wrong in that. People have their own freewill and freedom to vote to whom they want to.That is all about democratic rights in this modern world.
Now, winning party must have courage and political will to unite all Sri Lankans as one community. Since 1948, communal politics has been destroying this nation. No longer Sri Lanka could afford to do communal politics at this historical juncture in its modern political history. Sinhalese people should not further marginalise minority communities in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka badly needs contribution of all communities to build this nation. If you want to make Sri Lanka like that of Singapore or Malaysia, Sri Lanka must create an inclusive political culture that serves all communities. In this modern world, any attempt to marginalise or discriminative minority community would be detrimental for the development.
This victory puts a great responsibility over shoulders of Rajapaksa family and specially on the shoulders of Gotabaya Rajapaksa. People have given him this mandate to rule this nation for another 5 five years. Mahinda Rajapaksa has a long political experience. Now, he must know who his real enemies and friends are? Who real patriotic are and who aren’t? So, they must be shrewd enough to choose a team of some honest and talented people around them this time. Otherwise, this country could descend into bankruptcy.The president elect, Mr Gota Rajapaksa has a mounting task in front of him now. No longer he could keep all kinds of corrupt political circles around him. He needs a devoted team of honest politicians with Him. Putting economy of this country right should be his first and foremost priority. To do that, he needs some honest people around him. He could no longer afford to have corrupt and crook politicians around him to loot public money.
This victory is a golden opportunity to show the world that they have talent and skills to run this nation. This is a golden opportunity to display their true patriotism and loyalty to this nation. They should demonstrate this in action with their good governance and public administration free from all kinds of corruption and malpractice. They were accused of many things in the past by their political opponents. Now, they must use the next five years to create a political history in Sri Lanka with dedication. They must win the hearts and minds of all communities and serve the entire Sri Lankan community without any bias or racial discrimination. President-elect could become Lee Kuan Yew of Singapore if only he dedicates his energy and time to develop this nation. It is entirely up to him now, to create a political legacy in Sri Lanka. A new political system free of corruption, fraud is a must and timely needed to Sri Lanka if he wants to see progress and development. Sri Lanka badly needs a responsible and accountable political leader who can take this nation out of all financial trouble. Nothing stands between Sri Lanka and its rapid development except some crook politicians. Can GR make a difference this time?
For 22 million poor Sri Lankans there is nothing that much to celebrate about this election victory. Sri Lanka today encounters so many difficulties and problems. Sri Lankan economy is declining day by day. Government is struggling to meet its financial commitment. GR inherits a financially bankrupt government. He could no longer keep corrupt circle of people around him, if Rajapaksa family wants to protect its reputation, he cannot repeat its past mistakes. Putting Sri Lankan economy right must be the priority of this government. That demands the support and cooperation of all communities in Sri Lanka. Sri Lankan government has not fully utilised the human and natural resource of North and Eastern province for any development projects. Today, there are more than 1 million Sri Lankan expatriate Tamils in Europe alone. Yet, successive Sri Lankan governments have failed to benefit from those expatriates any meaningful way. Unless, GR comes up with some development programme to please Tamil communities in North and East, they will feel marginalized and discriminated. Today, Tamil community contributes immensely to the development of this country. In return, Sri Lankan government must do something to develop the North and East.
Opening of Jaffna International Airport by MS and Ranil sent a goodwill gesture. That is why people in North and East voted to SP overwhelmingly. GR must initiative this kind of development programs in the North and East if he wants to win the hearts and minds of Tamil community. Tamil community has sent a clear-cut message to Sinhalese community with their votes in this election. Tamil community is still waiting to see some kinds of peaceful resolution for their problems. They are not asking for any kind of autonomy or any Tamil Eelam rather they want to see progress and development in North and East. It is in the greater interest of Sri Lanka to develop these parts of Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka could boost its economy if it invests in these regions. So, GR must create an inclusive politics to take Tamil community on board with him in his government. Any isolation of Tamil community would be detrimental for this nation in a long run. With opening of Jaffna Airport, Jaffna could become a business hub in near future if only Sri Lankan government happily initiate development programs. At the end of the day, Sri Lanka will benefit from all these development programs. This kind of openness is needed to include all communities in politics and development of this nation.
Peace and community harmony must be promoted in Sri Lanka at any cost. We live in this global village, so any communal tension among community will damage our economy badly. Sri Lanka will tarnish its reputation. Sri Lanka heavily depends on tourism for its economic growth So, it cannot comprise its economic growth with some petty communal violence and tension. Today, many countries around us are competing to attract tourists. If we do not create a peaceful environment in Sri Lanka, International tourists will go for some other countries. So, it is in the national interest of this nation to promote peace and harmony between communities.
I think that Sri Lanka will follow a neutral foreign policy under presidency of Gotabaya Rajapaksa. MR family has developed a close friendship with China in recent time. At the same time, some members of Mr family have got US citizenship and they have developed some civic connection with US. Moreover, Sri Lanka has been developing a cordial diplomatic relationship with India. So, new Sri Lankan President will have to follow an impartial diplomatic relationship between all these countries. US will be happy to see GR as a Sri Lankan president for many reasons.
Moreover, President must take on board some talented young politicians with him. Today, most of old politicians in Parliament are over 70 year’s old. I do not think that many of them will contest coming parliament election. So, President must do head hunting to pick up some talented young politicians. I think that SLPP, SLFP, UNP and other political parties should context next general election. It would be better for Sri Lankan democratic tradition to protect all these political parties. So, SLPP should not undermine SLFP if it goes alone for next election. It is not going to be easy for Rajapaksa family to rule for the next five years. They will have a daunting task in front of them. Above all, Sri Lanka badly needs a strong opposition political party to create a vibrant and dynamic democracy. UNP is shattered with this election result. We do not know what next movewould be from UNP. SLFP is shattered now. we do not know what next move by SLFP political party would be? Sri Lankan political map is going to be changing soon with this election result. Let us pray that wisdom prevails in Sri Lankan politics.
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