Whether we like it or not, Sri Lanka has been a democratic dynasty.
Most of our leaders have come from the same families, with a few notable exceptions. Dudley Senanayake followed D.S. Senanayake. Sirima Bandaranaike followed S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike. Chandrika Kumaratunga followed her parents. Gotabaya Rajapaksa followed Mahinda Rajapaksa.
With the exception of Gotabaya Rajapaksa- who is not up for re-election yet- all those who followed in the family footsteps were re-elected, suggesting that even though they may have got to the top because of their familial connections, they were still endorsed by the people more than once, so they must have done a reasonable job.
That trend of dynastic politics continues. Sajith Premadasa, son of former President Ranasinghe Premadasa, is the Leader of the Opposition and also the leader of the main opposition party, the Samagi Jana Balavegaya (SJB). On the other side of the political divide, Namal Rajapaksa is being groomed to take over the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) after the days of the older generation of Rajapaksas, Chamal, Mahinda, Gotabaya and Basil, come to an end.
Much has been said about Sajith Premadasa’s leadership of the SJB. He has been accused of not seizing the initiative at a time when the government is in crisis and the public are subject to many hardships. He has been criticised for engaging in ‘gift’ politics, indulging in donating items and expecting votes in return.
To be fair to Premadasa, the parent party he came from, the United National Party (UNP) which is now little more than a retirement home from Ranil Wickremesinghe, didn’t give him his due. His nomination as presidential candidate in 2019 was delayed until the eleventh hour. Wickremesinghe didn’t hand over the reins of the UNP to the next generation and has refused to do so even after Premadasa formed the SJB.
Last week though the focus of attention was Namal Rajapaksa. Despite the widespread revulsion the Rajapaksa name now evokes, many believe the young man will one day become Sri Lanka’s leader. After all, the man has time on his side: he is only thirty-five years old and has been in Parliament already for twelve years, entering it at the tender age of twenty-four years. Even his father Mahinda was twenty-five years old when he first entered Parliament.
In what is a feature of dynastic politics and a common trajectory for leaders in waiting, Namal is being fast-tracked for the future. That is why he was appointed a Cabinet minister by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa in 2019 and handed the portfolio of Youth and Sports, even if it brought the number of Rajapaksas in the Cabinet to five.
Though it is clear that Namal Rajapaksa is being given preferential treatment, it can be argued that he has been elected by the people. Also, despite the many accusations being levelled at him, he has not been convicted in a court of law. Therefore, he has got to where he is through a seemingly democratic process.
What caused the furore last week were photos and videos that appeared on social media. They depicted Namal Rajapaksa relaxing, smiling and enjoying water sports in the neighbouring Maldive islands. A clearly enthralled Rajapaksa was shown, held aloft many feet above the water surface by two powerful jets of water.
The photos sparked a storm of protest. The questions asked by many was ‘how could he’? That was because the country was in a dire financial crisis, people were finding it hard to make ends meet as the cost of living was soaring and there were hardships everywhere, of gas, fuel and other essential items. Yet, the Minister of Sports and the apparent Leader in Waiting is showing gallivanting in the Maldives and by all appearances, having a gala time.
Namal Rajapaksa responded to the criticism. His defence was that he was in the Maldives as a guest of that government and therefore, at no cost to Sri Lanka. He is justifying his presence there on the basis that he was visiting in an official capacity to attend the Maldives Sports Awards.
That statement itself displays Rajapaksa’s political ignorance and immaturity. The public uproar was not about the technicality of whether Rajapaksa followed the correct procedure and protocols in attending that event in the Maldives; it was about the propriety of doing so when his country was facing arguably it worst economic crisis ever.
Rajapaksa, born to power and spending a greater part of his life with his father as either the President or the Prime Minister, has shown that he clearly misses the point. Not for him the sensitivities of the hoi-polloi or the sufferings of the common man. It is not for him to take the moral high ground and forego a few privileges at a time when his countrymen are going through dark days. He is simply happy to enjoy the perks and privileges of power as long as it is legal to do so.
There lies the difference. Mahinda Rajapaksa, whatever his faults, was a very sensitive man who was aggrieved when his fellow citizens came to grief. That trait was cultivated and enhanced during his long decades in the opposition. In later years, when Mahinda Rajapaksa honed his political skills, he became very adept at converting this sensitivity to his political advantage. That is why, when he taps someone on the shoulder and chats with him, he cultivates not only a friend but also possibly a potential voter.
Born to privilege, groomed for power and not having had to spend much time in the opposition, Namal Rajapaksa does not possess those instincts and skills. Worse still, he appears to lack the emotional intelligence to reflect on his blunder, learn from his mistakes and to try and be a better politician.
That is an unfortunate- and even dangerous- sign. That lack of empathy and sensitivity in a politician can be disastrous if, by some quirk of fate, he reaches the top. Namal Rajapaksa may be the heir apparent and the chosen one to carry forward the Rajapaksa dynasty, but he still has a lot more to learn and a long way to go.
