The Leader of the United National Party Ranil Wickremesinghe is facing an all new crisis after his “Special Assistant” of several years Sudath Chandrasekera tendered his resignation.
The letter is highly damaging to the leader said an avid UNP observer and loyalist. We carry herewith a full translation of that letter.
Hon. Mr. Ranil Wickremesinghe,
Resignation from service
Hon. Prime Minister/ Leader,
The future of the country and the party has reached a tragic crossroads. For this, chiefly, the individual who is ultimately responsible is you – which is why I thought of writing this letter.
My understanding of your character, actions and plans – goes beyond all others.
Your main characteristic when you are given power, is that you go into an imaginary world designed for you. This is the cause of all ills. If one sees you occasionally commending or thanking, it is at a time when you are helpless. You don’t know what gratefulness is – or pretending to not know it – is your cunning action. Had I seen in you this basic quality that should be showcased by a leader, I would, regardless of whether it’s night or day, have fulfilled the dream of making you president, a long time ago. However, I feel that now we are too late. You continue to make it a dream which will never come true.
My hopes, yours as well as the hopes of all party loyalists have now completed gone to waste. Not only have you completely destroyed your image, you continue to destroy the party as well. Then, what I had for you was a special respectful love. But at this moment, you are destroying the party through your behaviour and your inability to take decisions.
The flower bud obtained a significant victory at this election, not because of their extraordinary skill, but because of your diluted leadership.
You cannot delay any further. If that happens, everything will propel towards destruction.
At a time when party supporters were enraged when they heard the name ‘Rani’ , and when they stood against you as one , and when there was no one who stepped up on behalf of you , when you were rendered helpless – the communication unit set up by me , in the midst of all the threats, insults and intimidation , courageously moved from village to village to hange the mindset of the party supporters. I provided leadership to that.
Not only that, I succedded in recruiting 36,000 members , 576 electoral officers , 7800 strong and sound party activists and 134 mentors.
I can say it with pride that I managed to transform the Communication Unit as the most active branch organization to have ever been created in the party.
Back then , the party was not even able to muster a single meeting with your leadership and at that time the Communication Unit managed to hold the most successful May Day March and May Day Rally in Kurunegala.
For the operations and activites of the Communication Unit I never obtained a red cent from the party and it was all done until to date, with the assistance of my friends.
The Communication Unit comprises of the elephants that pulled the weight to protect you and the party.
It was from you that I learns, the elephants who pull the weight will never be allowed to take part in the parade.
When you took oaths as the Prime Minister it was a victory for us because it bore fruit to all our dreams. At several times, I request you to host a reception at Temple Trees to celebrate this win and say thank you to all. But what you told me was to refer the matter to “Sagala”. Its been three years since I made that request and I ashamed and disappointed for not being able to made that a reality.
I have been rendered helpless in the presence of my colleagues. If this is the fate that has befallen me for going beyond my official capacity and committing myself for you, what else can I say about the innocent party supporters.
Once we were elected into power , when we were providing political appointments , I handed over to you a list of 50 names from the commnications unit on a number of occassions. However, not a single person from the list had been given an appointment.
This is because they did not go to Royal College and were the elephants who pulled weight and were not part of the parades.
If they are given at least the slightest recognition , they would undoubtedly pull the weight on behalf of you forever.
However, when some of our members were chasing Ministers for appointments and position , they recieved a certain response and that is. ” You worked for Ranil , so go ask it from him “.
If the procession organized against you by the group led by Shiral Lakthilake and Maithri Gunaratne reached Colombo from Matara back then, you becoming the Prime Minister in the present day would have just become a dream.
Back then, together with Mangala Samaraweera I provided leadership to the Cinnamon Pole army and steered the groups headed by the communication unit to protect you and the party.
As everyone else had done, you too had forgotten that.
After you were elected as Prime Minister , I request you call to Temple Trees the 86 people who were named as defendants in the Cinnamon Pole Case and appreciate them , however , I feel ashamed to say you have not even provided an opportunity for that as well.
Three of them have already passed away and 02 of them will be paralyzed for ever , why ? Because they took the beating the bullets when they took to the streets to protect none other than you.
Today they are helpless. All they can do now is bear the costs for court hearing and their daily refereshments and return home , cursing you every single day.
We have to now assume more than a thousand times, whether we have been cursed by the Gods , who have been angered because protected you.
Last week at the conclusion of the Cinnamol Pole case at the Matara Court , after looking at sorrow on the faces of those people and what they had to say with rage in their hearts, what I felt was , the day they take the Cinnamon Pole to their hands against you is not far away.
If such a day dawn, as before, I will never think twice of providing leadership to them. I cannot in anyway betray they and avoid leading them.
Whenever our party is elected to power, the party forgets about the party supporters who elected it , and only think obout one’s self and close associates. When that was taking place I must have mentioned it you more than 100 times that we were making the wrong move.
The party cannot survive without the party supporters and likewise the government cannot survive without the party. I have pleaded with you on countless occassion to give priority to the party over the close associates. Howeve, those pleas fell on deaf ears.
During the recent years we held weekly or daily meetings at Temple Trees wasting countless amount of hours.
However, all those meetings were speeches and there was no action which was taken and what we are experiencing now is the result of the failure to do so.
Since the very day we were elected into power , I emphasized to organize conference at electoral level to raise awareness among the party supporters and maintain a healthy relationship with them.
Sadly , the only times the party supporters were required was for the May Day Rally , Party Conference and during the election period.
And the results of these actions – the party supporters have made it clear. It been just over a month since we suffered an election defeat. Unfortunately you have not even made an attempt to thank the party supporters, candidates, Provincial Councilors and Organizers who committed themselves for the elections.
The reason for that is because you operate with an attitude which is : ” If you want elect me as your Prime Minister , if not just stay idle “.
I am clearly aware the leaders who hold responsible positions in the party have neglected the party supporters. And that is because they have their own personal agendas.
In conclusion , I have to mention something about me as well. My present office as the garage at Sirikotha. It was I who built it , purchased office equipment and converted it into an office space. I operated as a nobody from within that confined space. I was not given any official task or responsibility.
If I have to ask what have I not done for you since the 10th of January 1985 , you would not be able to respond to that, however your conscience would know what I have done for you.
When I tried to resign from my position on several previous occassion , you told me ” Sudath you can create something different and you are leader who is talented and can execute responsibilities. Therefore I need your services.”
The talented leader who you referred to back then, was transformed into a person with no duty , by none other than you.
If you look at your own agenda, when you were not in power you worked in way to keep me at Sirikotha forever, the same way did to Sunil Magammana who worked as your private secretary as well as Sunil Premasiri and Sampson.
You would realize you made a mistake by evaluating me at their level and it is with great sadness I say, you would realize your mistake very soon.
I committed myself to you and If you have the heart to betray in this manner, I strongly believe the people and the Gods would approve of me working against you.
I strongly believe, according to my conscience this is not something wrong.
However, when I identify my enemy , I will not remain patient at all.
When Mahinda Rajapaksa was President he called me on three separate occassions and request that I join with him. I have mentioned this to you.
However, I do not betray anyone for personal benefits.
I will not become a traitor for mere benefits and privileges.
During the riots in 1988, when death threats were leveled against you and when the personnel in your security detail abandoned you, I gave leadership to protect your life, putting my life on the line. When threats were leveled by Prabhakaran, I was fearless in protecting you, using the latest security tactics. I was with you like a shadow. I did not think about myself, but I thought about you and your life and stood for your safety day and night.
Because of you, I became the Batalanda murderer, I became the person who assassinated Gamini Athukorala. For you, I became the person who was responsible for the death of Riyanzie Algama the person who committed self immolation opposite the Sirikotha (You did not even attend the funeral of Riyanzie) I was humiliated and I was called a red lipped, bum boy. That was the wealth I accumulated that was the prestige I was left with.
Apart from that wealth, I do not own a house, or a single perch. I do not even have another method of income. Up to date I live in houses that my friends pay the rent for. I have to move from one house to another like a gypsy, after two years, because the house owners increase their rent after two years. But I am full of pride, because my hands are clean.
I posses the courage to get up when I fall. I was appointed as your personal secretary after I was a victim of political revenge when Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga sent me on compulsory leave twice. The reason was my service for you and nothing else. I soon realized that you did not even have the heart to inquire into how I lived during the time I was sent on compulsory leave without pay.
There were 76 cases that was being investigated about me by the Criminal Investigations Department (Including the bombing in the premises of the municipal council). Under your governments in 2001 and 2015, Nothing happened to the political revenge that I underwent. I do not even have a pension today. When I brought this matter up with you, your response was to inform Sagala. When I did that, his response was to appeal to the Sirikotha like everyone else. To this day, the documents are at Sirikotha. My peers are DIGs now.
If this is the state I am in, what of the innocent people in the country and the party supporters? What will be their fate?
I was your personal secretary, that position has been dwindled down to a position called Special Assistant. I will not be petty enough to list out the injustices that you’ve done to me. I will require thousands of pages to write those. But I have felt on numerous occasions that I have been a fool to protect those secrets.
I think it is a crime against the nation to continue to remain at Sirikotha while being paid Rs.53 000 from the government, a vehicle and Rs. 22000 as a fuel allowance, without actually doing any work.
I can see that you, along with your group of friends, are dragging the country and the party to its grave.
I will never forget the support that you provided by giving me Rs. 100 000 in the year 1995 and by admitting my daughter into ladies college during your mothers funeral.
I have forwarded the letter of resignation, from the position of special assistant, to the Secretary to the Prime Minister, Saman Ekanayake for relevant action.
Finally, I would like to state that in my 33 years of service I have not made a mistake or humiliated you in anyway knowingly or unknowingly. However I have made thousands of enemies by trying to protect you.
A person who was committed to you (ONE MAN GOD)
SUDATH CHANDRASEKARA
