The Hon. Ajith P. Perera

¶ 01 [1.00 p.m.]

¶ 02 Hon. Deputy Chairperson of Committees, at this moment when condolence motions have been presented regarding the demise of six former Members of Parliament, I wish first to deliver a eulogy on the late Hon. Nandana Gunathilaka. I am glad to have this opportunity.

¶ 03 Hon. Nandana Gunathilaka was born in Panadura and educated at Sri Sumangala Boys’ College in Panadura, a distinguished school with a proud history. He passed Advanced Level with high results and entered the Faculty of Agriculture at the University of Peradeniya. At Peradeniya, he stood out both as a JVP activist and a student leader. During the 1988-89 insurrection, he acted as a revolutionary leader at the forefront. Many now sitting in the Government benches, and many in the JVP, are either younger than him or his contemporaries.

¶ 04 In my view, he led the revolutionary movement as a fighter based on the policies and principles he believed in. However, when that armed revolutionary struggle failed, he was among the few who remained to rebuild the JVP as a democratic party. He served as its General Secretary. Transforming an armed movement into a democratic one and laying the foundation for it to become, today, a governing force in this country, was also the work of Nandana Gunathilaka. It is a shortcoming that this history has not been fully recounted in this House. Though I was not in his camp, I cannot forget that while he took part in the JVP’s activities at Peradeniya, I, at Sri Jayewardenepura University, led student groups opposed to the JVP.

¶ 05 Politics changes over time with global and domestic developments. In that context, Nandana Gunathilaka abandoned the revolution and rebuilt the JVP along democratic lines. In 1999, he contested the Presidential Election as the JVP candidate and came third with 344,173 votes, establishing the JVP as the country’s third democratic force. Later, he joined coalition politics and represented the Kalutara District in Parliament from 2000 to 2010. He also served as Acting Minister of Posts and Telecommunications and as Acting Minister of Tourism. He was a prominent leader nationally who worked with President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga. Subsequently, he was twice elected Chairman (Mayor) of the Panadura Municipal Council, the second time from the United National Party. I first came to know him while participating in his election campaign.

¶ 06 Hon. Deputy Chairperson, I can state with confidence that Nandana Gunathilaka was 100% free of corruption. When Marxist movements globally were collapsing, he joined the UNP, holding social democratic views. He did so due to the personal trust he had in Ranil Wickremesinghe. I well remember that the first discussion about his joining the UNP took place at Mr. Wickremesinghe’s private residence, where several former senior JVP leaders were also present. I too had the opportunity to attend. His change was not driven by personal ambition but by conviction as to what philosophy could take the country forward after the global decline of Marxism.

¶ 07 As Mayor of Panadura he served twice, and no allegations of corruption were made against him. He was always efficient, dedicated full-time to public duty and politics, and sincerely worked for the welfare of the people and for the betterment of the city. Even those of us who once opposed him politically and later worked with him can attest that he was genuinely devoted to the public good. Though he is no longer among us, he departed carrying an honourable reputation. At his funeral, without party or colour divisions, not only the people of Panadura or of the Kalutara District, but thousands of good people from across the country participated, testifying to his clean and dignified political life.

¶ 08 His full-time dedication began in the JVP and continued thereafter. Today, some in Government claim to be full-time politicians but are wealthy magnates with local funds and cryptocurrency; that is their prerogative. In contrast, though Nandana later joined a party with a capitalist ideology, he followed the discipline of a full-time JVP cadre, never seeking personal comfort or family advancement, and devoted himself to public service. Therefore, he faced serious financial difficulties at the end of his life and spoke openly about them—this was not a weakness but a virtue. Some comrades even mocked him for not saving enough for his personal life. One of his comrades in this Parliament once gave him a zero, but I would give him a hundred, for his honesty, efficiency and principle. Though he did not amass wealth, he cared for his wife and child, yet still placed the country and his birthplace Panadura first, until the very end.

¶ 09 Later, when we built the Samagi Jana Balawegaya, he associated with us. In 2015, under his leadership, we won the Panadura electorate at the Presidential Election, and he also worked with me at the subsequent Parliamentary Election. Though he did not re-enter Parliament, he conducted an honest campaign and obtained a significant popular mandate, and continued serving the public. He taught us by example how a principled, full-time public servant-politician should live.

¶ 10 Many who struggled with him in the armed struggle and student movement, and those who later sat in Cabinets of coalition governments, are in this House. It is somewhat regrettable that only a few of us testify to him, but it also reassures us that there are principled politicians in this country. Not every politician is a thief; dedicated politicians exist in every camp. His death was unexpected: though he was ill, he was not terminal. The suddenness shocked the country and questions remain. Be that as it may, Nandana Gunathilaka was a principled, honest politician who worked for Panadura, Kalutara and the country. May he attain Nibbana.

¶ 11 Hon. Deputy Chairperson, Hon. Kanagasabai Thammapillai represented ITAK for more than five years and served several times on the Panel of Chairmen of this Parliament. He was principled and dutiful. We remember him with affection and I pray, according to my faith, that he attain bliss.

¶ 12 Hon. Deputy Chairperson, the young politician Janaka Mahendra Adhikari entered Parliament representing Anuradhapura District. After six years here, he continued in the Provincial Council. He practiced principled left-leaning politics representing farming communities in Anuradhapura. We recall him with affection.

¶ 13 Regarding Hon. Chandradhasa Galappaththi, he was a heroic leader for the people of the Gal Oya valley, living in one of the most difficult regions of the country, especially in Ampara city and district, devoting himself over a long time to the suffering people. He worked with the late P. Dayaratna, led social service as Chairman of the Ampara Multi-Purpose Cooperative Society, won the first Ampara Municipal Council election in 1979 and became its first Mayor, thereafter entering Parliament and later serving for a long period as Chairman of the Eastern Provincial Council. With a gentle smile, he knew the sorrows of the people and did much to develop Ampara, including helping build the Ampara Hospital. He first worked with the UNP and later helped build the SJB with us. Over decades he represented both Parliament and the Provincial Council, living among and with the people until the end. He was humane, capable and deeply committed to those in hardship.

¶ 14 I also met Hon. S.C. Muthukumarana here when we both first entered Parliament in 2010. As Government numbers were large then as now, first-timers sat in Opposition. He sat near me, and we built a friendship. A rural leader with deep, practical understanding of farmers’ issues, especially in the dry zone, he later became a Deputy Minister and moved to the Government side, but our friendship endured. I learned much from him about the challenges of the dry-zone farmer. Remembering his devotion to the people of Anuradhapura, I wish him Nibbana.

¶ 15 The late Hon. (Prof.) Tissa Vitarana was an eminent scholar, educated at Ananda College, Colombo, and the University of Ceylon and later London University. As fellow Anandians, we often discussed history. Despite our generational gap, our friendship extended beyond Parliament. We discussed the history of the Left, the LSSP, and the practical limits of Marxism versus building the country through liberal ideas, and the collapse of the Left in coalition politics. Today Hon. Rauff Hakeem delivered an excellent tribute to Prof. Vitarana’s vast scholarship, scientific stature, and contributions to Sri Lanka’s health sector and the institutions he helped build. I endorse those points. Our Parliament needs such learned, practical, internationally exposed minds. Remembering him, I wish him Nibbana. Thank you.