Oliver Cromwell: Go, in the name of God, go! Message for the UNP and its leadership?

These two political combines must now lead the political future of the country along with progressive minded politicians amongst the Tamil and Muslim community, and make these combines truly national political combines

The biggest defeat in the 2020 general election was suffered by the Grand Old Party of Sri Lanka, the United National Party. D.S. Senanayake must be turning in his grave. What has the present leader and his team honoured its founder with? 2.15% of the national vote and 249,435 votes and not a single elected seat in Parliament!

It is too good a party to have been wiped off so cleanly by the people of Sri Lanka. Their verdict echoes Oliver Cromwell’s words, this time directed to the leadership of the UNP. They have had enough of its leader and his leadership team.

“It is high time for me to put an end to your sitting in this place, which you have dishonoured by your contempt of all virtue, and defiled by your practice of every vice.

Ye are a factious crew, and enemies to all good government.

Ye are a pack of mercenary wretches, and would like Esau sell your country for a mess of pottage, and like Judas betray your God for a few pieces of money.

Is there a single virtue now remaining amongst you? Is there one vice you do not possess?

Ye have no more religion than my horse. Gold is your God. Which of you have not bartered your conscience for bribes? Is there a man amongst you that has the least care for the good of the Commonwealth?

Ye sordid prostitutes have you not defiled this sacred place, and turned the Lord’s temple into a den of thieves, by your immoral principles and wicked practices?

Ye are grown intolerably odious to the whole nation. You were deputed here by the people to get grievances redressed, are yourselves become the greatest grievance.

Your country therefore calls upon me to cleanse this Augean stable, by putting a final period to your iniquitous proceedings in this House; and which by God’s help, and the strength he has given me, I am now come to do.

I command ye therefore, upon the peril of your lives, to depart immediately out of this place.

Go, get you out! Make haste! Ye venal slaves be gone! So! Take away that shining bauble there, and lock up the doors.

In the name of God, go!”

The message of the Sri Lankan voters should also be heeded by all external forces that have consistently interfered in the internal affairs of the country. 

These include the many attempts made by several Western nations to undermine the sovereignty of the country and use unethical and immoral means to do so. In the main, they had used the UNP as their tool and launching pad for such activity. They must realise they no longer have a mole in Sri Lanka.

The reality before the country though is that the time of all grand old parties have come to an end. The SLFP of SWRD Bandaranaike and his family is gone, dealt a fatal blow by a man without principles who still hangs around for some crumbs to come his way. 

The UNP of the Senanayake/Jayewardene leadership has been dealt a fatal blow by a man whose only desire was to cling to power at whatever cost. Both parties and their leaders have had their last rites performed although one is yet to accept that and the other is waiting for some crumbs to be thrown into his plate.

The era of the new political combines, the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna and the Samagi Jana Balavegaya is before the country now. Those progressive minded members of the UNP and the SLFP now have an opportunity to demonstrate their vision and capabilities in the new political combines. The likes of Ruwan Wijewardene and Navin Dissanayake, two young hopefuls for the future should join hands with the Samagi Jana Peramuna. There isn’t anyone worth a mention left in the SLFP to move to the SLPP. Unfortunately, some SLFPrs who sullied the SLFP and are now in the SLPP but who should have got wiped out during this political tsunami will continue to sully the SLPP.

These two political combines must now lead the political future of the country along with progressive minded politicians amongst the Tamil and Muslim community, and make these combines truly national political combines.

The words ‘political parties’ is not being used here deliberately to distinguish the new political combines from the political parties like the SLFP and the UNP, both of which were undemocratic although they professed democracy for the country.

The new combines should introduce true democracy within their combines, and develop their constitutions to provide opportunities for their members at grass root level to have a say in who is being nominated to contest elections in the country and also who is to be elected to their governing bodies such as working committees, executive committee, etc., and through such a process, who should lead them and also be in the leadership teams. At present, both do not have such a mechanism and decisions are very centric, and made by a handful of persons.

It is perhaps opportune for both combines to restructure their own constitutions before attempting to introduce constitutional reforms for the country.

One hopes that in this new dawn of opportunity, the SLPP which has won a handsome landslide win, and the Samagi Jana Balavegaya which did well to withstand the force of the political tsunami, will discuss a new way of governance where they will agree on basic national policies when it comes to Economic, Language, Education, Health, Agriculture and Foreign Affairs policies, and agree to differ where necessary on implementation methodologies. 

It is also hoped they could reach agreement, along with the Tamil and Muslim political parties on a national integration and reconciliation policy that would be reflected in a new Constitution.

This is the opportune time for a new vision for Sri Lanka, and a new pathway to the future, forced on the country by an unseen, microscopic virus, and the wisdom of the people of the country.