by Garvin Karunaratne, former Government Agent, Matara

In nostalgia I remember my handling public address systems in Colombo. My father owned Radio Works, Bambalapitiya, that held a contact to supply public address systems for the LSSP for years. He employed three technicians who were busy at other venues and I was dropped off with equipment somewhere. I would scale a wall or scramble up a small tree to set up a loudspeaker and blast music till the speakers would drop in one by one. NM, Philip, Colvin had to attend to about five meetings and the people would wait eagerly for Philip. Crowds would greet them and Jayaweva rang the air for a while.

Philip was a very special speaker whom the people loved to hear. NM was very factual, explaining in detail and the people listened. Colvin had his arguments- he could never get out of his manner of speaking at the Courts. He was factual, exact, meticulous and firm. Dr S.A Wicks was a father figure who spoke softy. When Philip got up to the platform the people waited for his first utterance. It did not come that quickly. He would roll his fiery sharp eyes all around . Then he would grab the phone, move it forcefully and address all of us Sahodara varuni and the people listened in solemn silence. The difference between his speech and the speeches of the other leaders was that every word was uttered by Philip with a vehement force that shook the stage. It was unimaginable- a force that cannot be expressed in words. Every syllable was uttered sharp; we would even turn around to see what hit us- his words were that forceful. Then he would get into a frenzy and in detailing either the colonial imperial legacy that we all had to suffer dash the table with his fist sending any glasses on it flinging around. He would even take out his spectacles and dash it on the table.

That was Philip to me when I was a schoolboy. Then I never dreamt that in later life I would be one of his chief lieutenants in the field. We were all lieutenants as we had to invariably march to his tune. We could not fall out of step.

The General Election of 1956 was won by the oratory of Philip and Ven Henpitagedara Gnaseeha. I and Assistant Commissioner PK Dissanayake were very close to Ven Gnaseeha. We went to the Mudduwa temple every night at around ten and waited to greet Ven Gnanaseeha. He came always late in the night after addressing five or ten meetings and by five next morning was away in his Volkwagon again to address meetings. Philip and Ven Gnaseeha were the two speakers that moved the crowds to gain that victory. .

Philip became the Minister for Agriculture and Food and I was thrilled to work under him.

In a year, I was in charge of the Vegetable and Fruit Marketing Scheme centered at the Tripoli Market. I was moved to Colombo on a punishment transfer as I had punished a henchman of his- a trade union leader and I was worried thick. I loved the transfer as I could be at home with my parents and sisters. Before long I realized that Philip did not carry that incident in his mind.

Then, as Assistant Commissioner in charge of the Tripoli Market I was the supplies chief for the Canning Factory. The Marketing Department officers would ring me and tell me of a glut of tomatoes of red pumpkin and ask pumpkin and melon which they cannot tackle- going waste for lack of buyers. They had only one or two lorries. I would authorize them to purchase everything available. One call from me and in minutes Fonseka the Transport Officer despatched lorries. . The marketing officers had to wait at the fairs at night with kerosen lanterns; somehow the tomatoes and fruits were moved overnight. Our Commissioner approved all our work. The cannery was working 24 hours a day under Oswald Tilekeratne. who even exported about ten percent of the produce of pineapple pieces. . It was through this process that our country became self sufficient in all fruit jam and juice in the three years 1955. The Ministry was always up to the mark. That was Philip at the helm to mastermind every detail. He had catchers everywhere to somehow keep him informed.

I got moved to Anuradhapura. One day there was some petty pilfering and Philip in Colombo knew it before I got wind of it. He had called for a report and it was only then that I knew what had happened a few hours ago in a store under me. We were on pins, closely watched.

In another year I was implementing the Paddy Lands Act in the South . We Assistant Commisioners were put in charge of Districts. Philip was always too busy directing the agriculture department the agrarian services and the marketing departments. However he had his chief lieutenants and would dictate to them what had to be done. I use the army word lieutenants purposely as we had to forge ahead, like soldiers never take no for an answer. It was do or die. He would come for the first meeting and painstakenly explain the provisions of the Paddy Lands Act to the people. The people listened mesmerized and he would leave for another meeting. We Assistant Commissioners had earned the art of forceful speaking from him to continue. Philip had made us officers to forge ahead undettered.

We were always upto the mark. Stanely Senanayake was the first to spearhead the Paddy Lands Act in Hambantota. He would painstakently explain the Act and the people cheered. I had to organize meetings in the Matara District, Philip never came for a single meeting at Matara . I had a cadre of Divisional Officers who had mastered the art of forceful speaking, just in the Philip manner. Wickremasekara was very special who would carry the audience away for hours. My oration took at least an hour and the manner of Philip was there in every word. The masses flocked to listen to us. I got moved to Kegalla.

The day Philip was flung out of the Cabinet was a sad day for all of us. We Assistant Commissioners had got used to forge ahead and we were all lost for a while. The Ministry was taken over by a Minister who was not a socialist. We were worried but continued. Before the new Minister realized what was happening we were implementing the provisions of the Paddy lands Act with a vehement force. The new Minister realized that he could not stop us. Philip had packed the Agrarian Services Department with a handpicked staff vetted for socialist leanings and though the master had been thrown out we continued the battle. The Paddy lands Act was introduced to other districts and we spearheaded the task vehemently. It was as if Philip was behind us. He was nowhere. No one had to tell us what to do. Philip had done it all in the three years he was in charge.

That was Philip Gunawardena who has left his imprint on the sands of time.

Garvin Karunaratne

former SLAS, Assistant Commissioner of Agrarian Services,

Later Government Agent, Matara