Saturday Feb 14, 2026
Saturday Feb 14, 2026
Friday, 21 November 2014 01:55 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
Q: The country’s political situation is heating up as the presidential election approaches. How would you describe this situation?
A: The important factor is that everyone needs to understand what is good for the country and what is not good for the country. I am sure that a lot of people are realising the truth and beginning to take very important decisions. It is good to see the Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) taking a firm decision on that.
Even at the time I came to Parliament, my personal opinion was that the executive presidency should be abolished because of the power one particular person is going to have. But when I realised the value of the presidency while fighting the war, we kept it going. Then after the war, in 2009 we thought from the same power we could do a better job in the country. A lot of people will say development has happened. The important factor is to develop people rather than infrastructure. You need to develop infrastructure but the main objective should be to develop people in the country, which has not happened in the last five years.
Even in the villages people have realised the amount of corruption and unwanted things that are happening in the country mainly because of the powers of the presidency. Even the law hasn’t been perfect in the last so many years and it was controlled by one particular person. These issues prove that democracy in the country has been penalised very badly. When you analyse some of the major issues that have happened in the country for the last so many years, it is clear that they were related to the power of the presidency. It is not Mahinda Rajapaksa we are trying to get rid of; it is the power of presidency that we want to get rid of.
This is a super eyeopener for ‘proper politicians’. I am not talking about the corrupt politicians; they won’t take any decision because of the money they have earned in the last so many years. But people who love the country have to get together and solve this matter. The JHU has taken the initiative and I hope others will follow the same.
Q: How genuine are these claims of abolishing the executive presidency? What assurance can you give that it will actually happen?
A: This is one of the major questions people ask whenever we speak about abolishing the executive presidency. In the past, despite the various pledges made, the abolition of the presidency never became a reality. I feel that earlier nobody was concerned about this matter. It was not such an important issue that affected people in this country. But things have happened in such way that even the masses in the country insist on abolishing the executive presidency. This is not coming from a one particular group; it is coming from the people in the country.
I still feel that President Rajapaksa has a golden opportunity to do it even now. It is not too late. Unfortunately people who are surrounding him won’t allow him to do it. So it is up to the Opposition and a group of Government members who are concerned about the country to make this actually happen. They should get together and sort these things out.
Q: Do you believe the executive presidency will actually be abolished if the common candidate comes into power?
A: He has to do it. That is why we call him a common candidate. Whoever who is going to come in will have to go through the entire process and agree on the policies we are going to adopt after the presidency. I am sure people who have been named have categorically approved that particular matter. I think this will be the only time we might be able to do it. As I have always been saying, we should not miss this chance.
Q: How long will it take?
A: People think it can happen overnight. It is up to the Parliament to take the decision. Whoever is nominated from the common opposition, after winning will have to come to Parliament and request it. We have done some of the homework on how to do it. The plan is to implement all the pledges we have made within six months. Even the election system will be changed within that time. We are keen on putting an end to crossovers as well. This is something that has to change.
Q: Once the executive presidency is abolished, what will happened to the elected president?
A: He can leave the presidency and come back to Parliament one day. But the important factor is to do it as soon as possible. There will a president and he will not be a non-powerful president. It is more like a president with ‘a little bit of power’ where the Elections Commission, Judicial Commission and other things will come under him. Those are the things we have discussed. We are waiting till the election is called and after that we will finalise everything within a week.
Q: What’s your role in this?
A: My target is to get everyone on board. I am trying to get the country on a right path. My main ambition is to support whoever comes to do the right thing.
Q: How do you feel about your name being nominated as the common candidate?
A: When they nominated my name, I clearly pointed out that I am not a person who works for positions and I said that if there were people who wanted to be the common candidate, let them have it. But if everyone wants me to be the common candidate, I am ready to take the challenge.
Q: Do you think you have the required skills and qualities to be the common candidate?
A: Yes, definitely. I have more qualifications than some of the other names that have been proposed. When you look at some of the leaders who have run the country, I am not second to them. I always say that I put the country first as a sportsman and as a politician. I am not a person who loves positions and money. Then I would have been in the Government serving as a cabinet minister, earning money and enjoying all the perks. My parents have brought me up in such a manner that we are not tempted by money, power or fame.
Q: Do you think you can challenge President Mahinda Rajapaksa?
A: Absolutely; any day.
Q: Are you involved in this independently or are you representing a party?
A: I am still with the Democratic National Alliance. At the last election it was through the DNA that I got into Parliament from Kalutara. I left the SLFP because it is not the proper SLFP. People say this is a SLFP Government, but this is not a SLFP Government and everyone knows that. I contested from the DNA and I am still a DNA member.
Q: Why is it so difficult to name the common candidate?
A: What is the reason for nominating a person till we have an election? Let’s wait till the President calls for an election. Once he makes the announcement, we will come out with the right person. All these allegations are made by the Government itself.
All this time they have been engaged in corruption and malpractices earning lot of money; now that they see a threat – they see people who love the country getting together to put the country right. People who have been playing out the country have got very scared. They are the ones who are coming up with these baseless and false accusations. If they are in the Government, they should worry about their election rather than about knowing who the common candidate is.
Why is the Government so concerned about the common candidate? When you read a newspaper or watch news on television, we see a lot of people shouting against the common candidate. These are the very same people who played out the Government money and have the most number of corruption files. They say they are patriotic, but for money they are not.
The biggest joke is that people who have crossed over to the Government from the Opposition for money and perks are the ones who are doing most of the shouting. Why are they worried about the common candidate when they should be worried about their own matters? This clearly shows how threatened and shaken the Government is. Let us decide who the common candidate will be. Why is the Government so worried about the naming of the common candidate?
Q: Why should people vote for the common candidate and not President Rajapaksa?
A: People have realised the amount of corruption taking place in this country. There is no democracy or law and order in this country. The education system is going from bad to worse. People who are in the villages don’t have a proper education system.
Most of the money in the country belongs to around 5% of the population and these extremely rich people are running the country. The remaining 95% has just 10% of the money. We cannot let this country continue in this manner. This is exactly why they should vote for the common candidate.
