Sarath Bulathsinghala

Congratulations and well done. It is with enormous pride that we accept you as the 7^th President of Sri Lanka. Your conducted an exemplary campaign which culminated in your getting elected as the President of our beleaguered Motherland, Sri Lanka.

I am sure your election will see the end of dirty politics as we know it today. Those who threw mud at you bit the dust the day before yesterday – on 16 Nov.  The unpatriotic UNP is well-nigh done and finished! The decisive loss Sajith Premadasa at the Presidential Election  shows the bankruptcy of his approach to alleviating poverty  and in general of the mudslinging, corrupt UNP politics in Sri Lanka. His personal loss at Hambantota magnifies his political incompetency manifolds!

A decisive chunk of the votes that Sajith Premadasa received were from Tamil Racists TNA and Muslim Extremists of all hues in the North and East. Their racist demands before the elections you rightly threw in the wastepaper basket and from the voting pattern it is clear that they are yet to learn how to coexist. Reconciliation is a two-way street and it is apparent from the voting pattern they know little of it!

These mono-ethnic concentrations in the North and East constitute a clear and present danger to the existence of Sri Lanka. If Tamils and Muslims can live, work and prosper in the Sinhala majority South, equally it must be true for the Sinhalese in the North and East. The ethnic imbalances must be corrected in a way that is good for all Sri Lankans. Continued development of the road and rail network, the airports and the Internet will put an end to this isolation and mono-ethnic sickness. We have to forge a unified nation based on mutual respect and not on ‘dog-eat-dog’ mentality. The wholesale buying and alienation of land for worthless Rupees and political patronage should be stopped to prevent mono-ethnic enclaves all over the Island. 

Now that you – nation’s beloved GOTA is in the driving seat the long 5 year political drought is over and all well-meaning Sri Lankans can ‘go to work’! The nation lost valuable 5 years of progress and in the process ended up poorer. The selfishness of Sirisena and his lackeys, the traitorous agenda of Ranil and his cohorts to make Sri Lanka a Failed State brought untold miseries to the average man and woman. Internationally the nation was compromised on many fronts – political, economic and security.  Investors left the island in droves for they did not have any confidence on a state that robs itself! The final nail in the coffin was the much tooted mostly one sided agreements to be inked with the USA. The long-awaited end of Jadapalanaya that came into being on that unfortunate date in Jan 2015 is now over and hopefully for good!

Let the Law and Due Process take place in handling corruption and frauds. All those who are responsible for the Bond Scams and other similar scams must be allowed to be brought in before the law and dues extracted of the stolen wealth. The nation waited with utmost patience for the last  5 years to see justice. Apparently, Sirisena locked the Presidential Inquiry report of the Bond Scam and other Presidential Commission reports well away from the reach of the Law. These reports made with people’s money must be available for public scrutiny.

Making Sri Lanka a failed state was Ranil’s main agenda given to him by his masters in the Christian West. The Central Bank Bond Scams, planned well ahead of the Jan 2015 Presidential Elections, the resulting high Bank Interest Rates, higher taxation, pauperizing of the farmers and other agricultural industries put paid to the economy that was running over 7% per annum and now brought down to 1.6% per annum. The food security was compromised by the numerous pressures brought in against the farmers. The export markets were destroyed by the dilution of Sri Lanka brand products with imported look alike trash.

All these and others were aimed at making Sri Lanka a failed state as well as a country highly vulnerable to foreign sanctions. No country in the world prospers by destroying the well-being of the indigenous farmer. Most developed countries protect their farmers with many subsidies, soft loans and outright protection when deemed necessary. In these countries, the farmers are usually rich! It was countries that were self-sufficient in their food supplies that made way of the industrialization of their economies. The Industrialization of Japan only took place after they became self-sufficient in their rice supplies in the 13% cultivable land in their possession. To this day the Japanese farmer is a highly protected entity! The extent of Ranil’s treachery know no bounds!

The responsibility of forging a new nation is on your shoulder. The patriotic business community, the farmers, the small-scale entrepreneur and the youth of our nation are on your side. It is up to you to harvest this potential for the good of the nation. You rightly promised to bring in just the right combination of economic factors including lowering of taxes and in some cases their outright elimination. The poverty alleviation measures and others measures you have brought in your manifesto will sensitize and spur the nation into production mode. Once the land is made secure and safe, investors will flow in to take advantage of what Sri Lanka can offer to the world. It is the tourist industry that can bring the quickest results to our failing economy for an excellent tourist infrastructure is already in place – waiting for the customers!

It is time for the SLFP and UNP to wither away. They are slowly but surely outliving their usefulness and use by date. The division of the majority Sinhalese between these two selfish and impotent political parties led to making racial and religious minorities the kingmakers of Sri Lanka. These Shylocks continue to ask for the proverbial ‘pound of flesh’ in return for their ‘favors’. Their tactics and antics bled the nation ever since the beginning of the 20^th Century and then after Independence for the last 70 year and during the 30 year Tamil Racist Terrorist War. The role of the TNA as the main Opposition Party in the Parliament should be an eye-opener for what their intentions are.  The end results are Easter Sunday Bombings and the 13 demands from the TNA and the voting pattern we witnessed on 16 Nov.

It is with a sigh of relief that we notice that you were able to come to power without giving into the extremist demands be they racial or religious. The well thought out leaving of the extremist elements from your campaign team augurs well for the future of Sri Lanka. This is a good start and it is time to build on these strengths for there are many in the UNP and the SLFP who wish well for Mother Lanka and who are aware and understand the danger of balkanizing Sri Lanka. Balkanizing simply means unending war and enmity across a divided land across disputed borders and water rights. Closing ranks of the patriots is the only way ahead for Sri Lanka!  At the present moment a meeting of Sri Lanka lovers can now only happen under the Pohottuwa umbrella!

National Service for all youngsters. This is a measure that will allow building the character of our youth as well as their racial and religious integration. This is the foundation of patriotism and a strong and faithful military. Taking our immediate past history a strong military is a sin quoi non for Sri Lanka

It is extremely important how we handle India. They have justifiable security concerns regarding their Southern Flank. Only way Sri Lanka can meet their concerns and be interference free is to have a strong military and Intelligence services. Sri Lanka should be a major force for the protection of the Southern Sea Lanes as well of the South Indian Ocean. Hambantota Harbour lease with the Chinese must be re-negotiated if at all it is possible at this late hour. It was with the intention of making Sri Lanka a playground for competing powers that Ranil literally sold this valuable asset to the Chinese. One can easily see how the Indians and the US are maneuvering in Sri Lanka to get a piece of the action. Sri Lanka will have to be very smart if we are to remain a free and peaceful nation. This responsibility is now on your shoulder. We also must develop strong bonds with other Buddhist Nations in Asia – Myanmaar, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, China and Singapore – for we have much in common on all fronts including security and the well-being of our age old cultures.

Sri Lanka must be made governable. The traitorous lowering of the minimum voting percentage to 5% ( from 12.5%)  in order to curry favor with the Muslims by myopic Premadasa Sr has made the political institutions in Sri Lanka ungovernable. This must be corrected.  Rabble rousers who lost even their deposits including the JVP have no place in main stream politics. Perhaps they have a role in trade union activity but no other. The behavior of the JVP in main stream politics have not been of any benefit to the political process for their political representation is minimal and do not represent the needs of the nation by any stretch of imagination.

We do not live forever. Making way for succession is an important part of your work. It is of utmost importance that the future that you intend to build for our beloved Motherland is left in secure hands – most importantly and not necessarily in the hands of the Rajapakse nephews. They must come to prominence on their own steam and not on the shoulders of fathers and uncles!

Nepotism though not right is not necessarily wrong either. Otherwise we would not have you as our beloved President now. Sri Lanka needs leadership material and we are seriously short of good leaders. When found they must be cherished and not vilified. This is the reason tens of thousands still throng wherever the Rajapakses go. Ever since you started working as the Defence Secretary and was performing well, I knew you were Presidential material. I have been proven right today and I am happy for that! A lot depends on how you lead the nation in the coming months and years!

We are a grateful nation. By and large majority of us do not forget easily nor are ungrateful. Have no second thoughts – it is a grateful nation that is bringing another Rajapakse to power today!

We wish your presidency well. We wish you continued good health and long life. Have strong faith in the tenets of Buddhism and May you govern the nation with Dasa Raja Dharma!

May the Triple Gem Bless you and May All Gods guide and protect you in all your future endeavors. 

Sarath Bulathsinghala

18 Nov 2019