Sajith takes over ‘Grand Old Party’, unites SJB and UNP

24 Jan 2021

Sajith takes over ‘Grand Old Party’, unites SJB and UNP

24 Jan 2021

By Outlander The following hypothetical article is intended as a parody political forecast from 24 January 2047, or 25 years from now. None of the events that follow have taken place as of today. In a sombre ceremony, Opposition Leader and Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) Leader Sajith Premadasa accepted the leadership of the United National Party (UNP) from its leader, 97-year-old Ranil Wickremesinghe, who is stepping down after helming the party for over 52 years. Premadasa and Wickremesinghe publicly parted ways 25 years ago, in 2020, over a struggle for the leadership of the UNP, with Premadasa and the majority of UNP MPs splitting to form the SJB. In a statement, Wickremesinghe said he is stepping down from active politics due to health considerations and was confident in the new leadership team headed by Premadasa. As a part of the negotiations between the two statesmen, Premadasa agreed to keep UNP Deputy Leader Sagala Ratnayake in his position, much to the disappointment of other aspirants to the post, Ruwan Wijewardena and Navin Dissanayake. Premadasa has promised Dissanayake the post of National Organiser, which he held over 25 years ago in 2020. Wijewardena will be appointed as UNP Media Secretary. Opposition MPs are hopeful that the unification of the UNP and SJB would allow them to present a viable challenge to the ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP), which has held the presidency and a two-thirds majority in Parliament since President Gotabaya Rajapaksa led the party to victory in the 2019 and 2020 elections. The SJB suffered its own split in 2023 on the issue of the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution, which restricted the right to vote for members of minority communities who were seen as disloyal to Sri Lanka. Several prominent SJB figures, including Champika Ranawaka, Harin Fernando, and Ranjith Madduma Bandara, vigorously opposed the measure, and were incensed when the Government forced Chief Justice M.U.M. Ali Sabry to step down on the eve of the Supreme Court hearings into the constitutionality of the draconian law due to his suspected opposition to the bill. However, Premadasa as Opposition Leader insisted that the issue of minority votes was not one worth agitating with the Government on, as he feared it would risk angering the majority Sinhalese Buddhist voters necessary to win the 2024 presidential election. The split led to Ranawaka, Fernando, and others leaving the SJB, after they refused a written order from SJB General Secretary Jalani Premadasa to support the amendment. After the Supreme Court ruled the 22nd Amendment constitutional and it was passed by Parliament, Ranawaka, Fernando, and Senaratne were arrested on charges of inciting ethnic tensions by opposing the bill. They were sentenced to 30 years rigorous imprisonment. The sentence was praised by Opposition Leader Premadasa as a strong move to promote ethnic harmony. President Basil Rajapaksa, who succeeded his brother Gotabaya Rajapaksa after the latter stepped down from office, welcomed the unification of the UNP and SJB. The President spoke fondly of Wickremesinghe and Premadasa, calling them reliable politicians whom “the people could trust” to vibrantly but responsibly oppose the Government in a healthy democracy like Sri Lanka. Some in the SJB are wary that the 70-year-old Premadasa is past his prime, and his prospects of galvanising sufficient support to take on the SLPP are bleak. But some fear that he is their only option, as he has been for the last 25 years. “What choice do we have?”, one SJB MP asked. “If we remove Sajith, who can take his place?” The challenge is similar to that faced by Premadasa himself decades ago, when in 2020 he displaced Wickremasinghe after 25 years leading the UNP, before Premadasa’s own 25-year losing streak against the Rajapaksas.

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Sajith takes over ‘Grand Old Party’, unites SJB and UNP

Sajith takes over ‘Grand Old Party’, unites SJB and UNP

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