9 February, 2025

Blog

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s Historic Win & His Promising Start

By Rajan Philips

Rajan Philips

It is no exaggeration to say that no previous Sri Lankan political leader has achieved what Anura Kumara Dissanayake accomplished this week. His leap from 418,553 (3.16%) in 2019 to 5,634,915 (42.31%) and victory in 2024 – a 14-fold jump in five years – is in itself unprecedented, not only in Sri Lanka but likely also elsewhere. More importantly AKD did what he did without the proverbial political spoon in his mouth. Up till now everyone who achieved high political office in this country had a feudal head start and/or got an early seat on the political party train that was always on a track to the station of power. Those tracks are still there, but the old trains have been cannibalized through the corruption and nepotism of their operators.

The long and short view

In my view, there are two sequential aspects to AKD’s historic win – one immediate and the other long term. In the more immediate sense, it certainly helped AKD that the last person to win a presidential election before him arrived with a political foot in his mouth. The voting story of this election is that with the implosion of the Rajapaksas following the disaster of the Gotabaya Rajapaksa presidency, the contest became a race between three candidates – AKD, SP and RW – for the 6.9 million votes that Gotabaya Rajapaksa polled in 2019. AKD beat the other two hands down.

The overnight conventional wisdom is that AKD benefited from the vote split between SP and RW, and that if one of them had given way to other AKD would not have won the election. The vote tallies and distributions between 2019 and 2024 do not quite support this assessment. On the contrary, the distribution of votes seem to show that in a two person race against either SP or RW, AKD would have polled over six million votes and still won the election.

In the longer historical view, as opposed to the immediate post-Gota context, I would argue that AKD’s historic success is a testament to the resilient possibilities of Sri Lanka’s political system and culture, and it gives the lie to the hyped up narrative that the country has been an unmitigated basket of failures for all the 76 years after becoming independent in 1948. That nothing good ever happened in 76 years. This is an obvious exaggeration, if not a patent falsehood.

While this narrative was a part of the NPP’s campaign and could at least partly be justified as normal election rhetoric, some of the commentating fellow travellers of the NPP took the narrative to absurd limits and flew in the face of the same history that some of them learnt and even taught in our schools and universities.   

Put another way, AKD’s victory is proof that things can work in Sri Lanka, and that nearly a century of state welfarism and the progressive political ethos that sustains it have enabled vast cross-sections of the Sri Lankan society to improve their living conditions and life prospects, and to inspire committed individuals like Anura Kumara Dissanayake to emerge as leaders and succeed in democratic politics at the highest level.

Nor should there be any denying that all of Sri Lanka’s progressive ethos is the main achievement of the country’s left movement from the 1930s, the same movement that schismatically gave birth to the now victorious NPP’s own progenitor, the JVP, among so many others along the way. All of this is not to diminish AKD’s impressive achievement, but to applaud it.

No one on the left has come anywhere near to achieving political power that Anura Kumara Dissanayake has now achieved. On the one hand, those who took the parliamentary path to achieving socialism did so in spite of their sharing the same social advantages with many on the political right. It was their labour that created state welfarism and made it a fact of life in Sri Lankan society. On the other hand, those who spurned the parliamentary path as a bourgeois dead end, made no headway in spite of pursuing a violent route that only brought more grief and not much good.

To the credit of Anura Kumara Dissanayake, he has demonstrated that the left can contest and win an election without the old vehicle of the united front or the new bandwagon of a multi-party alliance. And more remarkably, he has demonstrated that it is possible to succeed within the democratic electoral process, and that turning to violence is not necessary for achieving political ends.

Promising First Steps

All the same, achieving electoral victory is only the start of the political journey and not the end of it. Especially when political goals are inspired by the common good and not driven by private or familial gain. Making private gains and promoting family interests through political means is easily achieved and in short order. Pursuing the common good, both substantive (as in resurrecting the economy) and procedural (as in reforming the constitution), on the other hand, involves a long and grinding journey that requires a team of equals and friendly rivals, but all having the discipline, dedication, and the necessary skills.

In electoral politics, the first steps after victory go a long way in showing the sincerity, the commitment, and the ability of the winner and the winning party to follow the people’s mandate, honour their trust, and deliver on the electoral promises. So far, as the newly  minted President, Anura Kumara Dissanayaka has been making all the right moves and avoiding obvious mis-steps. His decisions are good outcomes forced by the virtue of necessity, on the one hand, and constrained by his own commitments, on the other. His first steps are both laudable and promising.

With himself as President and only two MPs in parliament, the only way President Dissanayake could have convened the now dissolved parliament would have been through deals with one or two parties and their MPs in parliament. Such deals would invariably have involved cabinet positions, governor positions, diplomatic postings and keeping the current parliament on extended life support. The same old quagmire that Sri Lankan politics has been wallowing in for the last thirty years. The quagmire that Ranil Wickremesinghe would not free himself from, in any of his three incarnations this century – as peace prime minister, yahapalanaya prime minister, and economic rescue president.

President Dissanayake has made it look so easy. He dissolved parliament immediately, as he had promised to do before the election; and has scheduled parliamentary elections for November 14, and the convening of the new parliament for November 21. After two years of delays and dilly dallying by Ranil Wickremesinghe, and all the planetary explorations for years before that by the Rajapaksas, President Dissanayake has ensured that Sri Lanka will be having both a new president and a new parliament in a span of two months.

For the intervening caretaker period, he has struck a cabinet of three and neatly divided the portfolios between himself as President, Harini Amarasuriya as Prime Minister, and veteran parliamentarian Vijitha Herath. All born in and after 1968, they are a breath of fresh air for a polity that has been overburdened by old men for an overly long time. Sri Lanka not only has the smallest cabinet ever, but also for the first time a cabinet without family or extended and extensible family members – with the possible exception, perhaps, of the cabinet of SWRD Bandaranaike.

The President’s focus rightly seems to be on the economic front, as it should be, and he is showing a steady hand and readiness for consultations as he takes initiatives to navigate the country through its continuing economic crisis. Minister Vijitha Herath, whose list of portfolios includes Public Security, appears to be finally bringing some reprieve to the vexed Visa question, which Tiran Alles turned had into a global skullduggery and which Ranil Wickremesinghe handsomely ignored while lecturing everyone on how to run a country.

For her part, Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya has reportedly issued a directive advising schools not to invite politicians to school functions. A charming piece of educational initiative that would have served the country very well had it been in place from the time CWW Kannangara introduced the free education system.    

Most of all, for the first time in 47 years, Sri Lankan voters have the opportunity to have a clean slate of new parliamentarians in the November parliamentary election. The NPP will assuredly field a slate of new candidates who have never been in parliament. Hopefully, their list will include candidates with a range of educational qualifications and life experiences, and will scrupulously exclude family members and individuals with a criminal record. At the minimum, the NPP’s list should put the onus on the other parties to prune their own lists and get rid of all the deadwood and rotten mangos that have been in out of parliament from as far back as 1970.   

Based on the presidential election results, the NPP has more than a fair chance of forming a majority government. Of the 160 polling divisions in 22 districts, the NPP (AKD) won 106 and SJB (SP) 48, with 6 in the Jaffna District won by the Common Tamil Candidate. The NPP vote is likely to stay steady and grow, while the SJB votes will revert back to their respective political parties for the parliamentary election. This would be more so in the seven districts where Sajith Premadasa came first, five of which are in the north and east and the other two are Badulla and Nuwara Eliya. 28 of the 48 polling divisions where Sajith Premadasa came first are in these seven districts.

The dynamic of the elections and the top of mind issues for the voters will likely be different in the parliamentary election from the presidential election. The voter turnout in the presidential election dropped by 5% nationally from 84% in 2019 to 79% in 2024, and the turnout was lower in each district as well. Whether the campaign for the parliamentary election will energize more voters to turn out in November remains to be seen. What seems to be clear is that energy and enthusiasm are now mostly with the NPP.

Latest comments

  • 6
    1

    SL Tamil political parties should not for time being should NOT pressurise AKD to implement the 13A + as it will adversely affect the economic progress. It will be resulting in wasted Tax payers money. Once the ship is steady and if the Tamils are NOT happy with the way NPP is ruling then they could ask for power sharing ( Federal state ideally). We do hope that those who are standing for the parliamentary elections are of high standing in the society. No more for low IQ / unqualified/ criminals are allowed to stand in the election

    • 2
      2

      “SL Tamil political parties should not for time being should NOT pressurise AKD to implement the 13A + as it will adversely affect the economic progress. It will be resulting in wasted Tax payers money. “
      Tamil political culture should be changed completely and it needs time to make changes. The change should come from the people to make sure that opportunistic parliamentary politics should not be in place to replace the existing political culture. The bargaining politics based on promises should come to an end. There is no doubt that Tamils need a secure, safe and equal environment where the rule of law, justice maintained as principle of politics.
      It is sad that without that base Tamil political parties started to face the parliamentary politics to divide and rule politics without learning a lesson from the behaviour of their failure. I would like to give an opinion to those people who voted for Sajith Premadasa based on the request of Federal Party which is the traditional party which is now divided because of the power greediness. This power greediness divided the party into two. The people have the right to demand that the party should first unite before they go for the parliamentary election. Federal party now not only divided Tamils but also the party as well.

      • 6
        2

        “While this (no progress in 75 years) narrative was a part of the NPP’s campaign and could at least partly be justified as normal election rhetoric, some of the commentating fellow travellers of the NPP took the narrative to absurd limits and flew in the face of the same history that some of them learnt and even taught in our schools and universities. “
        Sadly, this tale was swallowed by many well- intentioned but gullible voters. Repeat a lie many times, and it becomes truth, as one Goebbels used to say.
        The charade of the cars parked at Galle Face too has taken on a life of its own, despite the Presidential Secretary himself saying that less than 200 vehicles are present. The latest version on social media claims that there are 60,000 vehicles there, enough to clear the National Debt.
        This sort of thing was done by all parties after a change of government, but doesn’t the NPP claim to be different?

        • 1
          1

          oc
          Has the NPP made an official statement in the matter?
          Stupidity can transcend ideology.

          • 3
            0

            SJ,
            Wasantha Samarasingha was seen on TV milking the issue for what he could get. Some NPP members seem to be over-enthusiastic.

        • 2
          0

          OC,
          .
          If the people voted for change, it should apply in all areas.
          I think srilanken YouTubers who are again spreading hate and taking advantage for their dollar gains should also change drastically. They pollute waters again and again.

          There is a person named Sudatta Tilakasiri who is not even able to compare to Wimal Weerawansa’s education and is abusing his language (real sinhala filthy – this man should be banned) for the sake of popularity. This man should be punished according to Sri Lankan ethics. Code of ethics should be re-introduced to lanken media channels. This is long due issue.
          There is no limit for his expressions in sinhala which is really really belong all ethics and morals.

        • 1
          0

          OC and true souls,
          If the people voted for change, it should target all areas.
          I think srilanken YouTubers who are again spreading hate and taking advantage for their dollar gains should also change drastically.
          They spread lies and take the lead of the FAKE public perception of this sinking nation.
          I think we should start with them if we really want to clean this eroding society.

          There is a filthy mouth named Sudatta Tilakasiri (should be a bastard) who is not even able to compare to Wimal Weerawansa’s education and is now abusing his language (real sinhala filthy – this man should be banned) for the sake of society cleaning.
          This man should be punished according to Sri Lankan ethics. There is no limit for his expressions in sinhala which is really really beyong all ethics and morals.

      • 3
        1

        “Tamil political culture should be changed completely and it needs time to make changes.”
        That needs approval from the paymasters that lie abroad.

    • 5
      3

      The sec 13 and 13 A + was only for the north and east and not for the other 7 Sinhalese majority provinces. This is where the Taxpayers money was wasted. JR deliberately created all these provincial councils in these 7 Sinhalese majority provinces, to deliberately muddy and water down the Sec 13A as he was a racist. If there is going to be economic progress 13SEC a that is already enshrined in the constitution should be fully implemented with land and police powers in the north and east and the other seven provincial councils should be disbanded not to waste taxpayers’ money.

      • 5
        3

        Sinhalese rights and powers do not depend on economic progress and similarly Tamil rights and powers also should not. This was the mistake that was done by the Colombo based Tamil leaders and elite at the time of independence. Not insisting on a federal form of government and see what it led to the Tamils and the Tamil leaders now should insist on SEC 13A that is already there and in practice but not in full, for the country to progress. IN UK the British king and queen went to Scotland to celebrate the Scottish parliament, this is the vast difference between these countries and ours. Human rights and diversity is respected. They did not think devolving powers to Wales and Scotland is a waste of taxpayers’ money. Only when it comes to Tamil rights and enshrining them Taxpayers money comes to discussion not for anything else. Wasting swindling giving all sorts of freebies to the politicians and the yellow pets.

      • 1
        3

        Rohan25 / September 24, 2024
        ‘He only obtains blessings from the Buddhist priests and the other religious leaders were there just for a show. Completely ignored them and this so-called leftist Marxist made a straight beeline to the Buddhist priest to establish Sinhalese Buddhist credentials.’
        .
        Be careful when you lie. https://apnews.com/video/sri-lanka-sajith-premadasa-communism-political-and-civil-unrest-ranil-wickremesinghe-e090aa7867fe4acd9e7febdf54a3c150

        • 0
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          Sorry it only confirms what I stated. Look at the video properly. You are lying

          • 0
            0

            Sorry, it does not. Watch it fully, to the end.

  • 5
    0

    The country does not have a snowball’s chance in hell to combat corruption if…….
    .

    1) The country does not have a snowball’s chance in hell to combat corruption if professionals particularly accountants/auditors and lawyers do not have the courage to blow the whistle on corruption. They are the first and last line of defense against any form of corruption. Without their assistance large scale corruption can NEVER take place. Does AKD recognize this FACT?
    .

    2) The NPP must refrain from making a song and dance about ‘show’ projects such as vehicles parked at Galle Face Green and get on with substantial work.
    .

    3) If AKD is serious about combating corruption, should he not facilitate a line of communication to him through a trusted individual whose e-mail address & phone number will be in the public domain to receive CREDIBLE COMPLAINTS from the public who are NOT ANONYMOUS? I voted for AKD believing he will make a DIFFERENCE. Will he?
    .

    Amrit Muttukumaru

    • 3
      4

      I am very skeptical of this personality cult now that a similar personality cult burned me and I was completely wrong about the “Gota ” and if the people are waiting for the monies from the so-called prosecution of “corruption” they are in for a rude awakening.

      I may be wrong. but the corruption in Sri Lanka is not the type like in Bangladesh where some minister is buying hundreds of properties around the world from stolen money of the poor Bangladeshis. I believe it is more of the kind of influence peddling of the politicians for government jobs, My father was a govt servant and he was always pressured by the politicians in power to give jobs or school positions the politician’s henchmen or risk being transferred to Timbuktu. As insidious as this is there is not a great amount of money stolen. It all goes back to the inefficiency of the government. I cannot see AKD even going as far as Ranil ( his efforts were frankly disappointing)

      my fear is that in getting rid of the 225 we have just created another 225 who will end up doing the same things.

      in this case though I most certainly hope I am wrong. because the next choice will the the long-suffering Seelarathna thero.

  • 8
    0

    The SL citizens do not have to wait for the results of the parliamentary election to start the court cases against who perpetrated forced disappearances /squandering the Tax payers money.

  • 4
    1

    The Educational system/ standards should be improved in such a way that benefits the society especially business society. Rural schools teaching should not be inferior to that of teaching at city schools. English needs to taught in all schools

  • 4
    5

    The start is always promising . but it is the end that is important. no ? At this point it seems like an ideal honeymoon. and all the ills of the society has been cured. for example there was a youtube peice that was saying AKD had solved the problem with the Visas in Katunayake. and you should watch the comments. all they did not do was call AKD Katharagama Deiio. but I know that this is just untrue. I arrived in the country on the 11 th of September that system was already gone. we only paid 50$ for the Visa and it was all handled by the Sri Lankan immigration. But this is an example of the level of propaganda that is reminiscent of the old JVP .
    Eventhough I was a vocal proponent against the JVP I do have to agree that a system change that the young of this country are looking for is not possible under the old two parties. So I do agree that AKD is probably the only possible option. but the challenges that the country faces cannot be solved by propaganda or by rice and egg farmers giving a temporary cost reduction. I get the feeling AKD is well aware of this. but its not clear his supporters are. They are putting on the show like the nonsense with those SUVs at the galleface.

    • 2
      2

      // all they did not do was call AKD Katharagama Deiio //
      Aiyoooo…., A14455, the man is said to be a Marxist, how can he be Katharagama Deiio at the same time?

      • 2
        0

        Those who called him Katharagama Deiyo were not necessarily Marxists of any kind.

      • 1
        2

        I see no conflict in being Katharagama Deiio and being a Marxist. This character had 8 hands many wifes and rides a monara. what can be more Marxist than riding a common Monara instead of a land cruiser?

        • 1
          0

          “This character had 8 hands many wifes and rides a monara.”
          Sorry 6 faces, 12 hands and just two wives (one married for love the other ‘a gift’ for winning a battle that saved the Devas).
          He rode a goat and elephant too in earlier times.

          • 0
            0

            I think that is correct. being an engineer by training I tend to approximate. sometimes very incorrectly.

  • 9
    1

    AKD means business. …… If he succeeds or not is another matter.

    Unlike anyone before, he has the true intention/intent.

    Others just made up and sold stories …….. with whatever facts around …….. at election time ……. to dupe voters ……. and win elections.

    Voters ….. just split according to their likes/dislikes …… and emotions …… and voted for suits & ties or red-scarfs/Satakayas ……. according to their class/station-in-life …… rural/urban ……. religious/ethnic …… affiliations/mindset.

    There wasn’t much of a choice on offer ……. for a thinking …… or even a non-thinking …… voter.

    • 2
      0

      nimal fernando

      “AKD means business. …… If he succeeds or not is another matter.”

      Do you agree with AKD?
      Watch this clip and let us know how the old guards would have reacted in their central committee meetings?

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2yNkwkIViWA
      I believe this was delivered in Jaffna before the elections.

  • 3
    0

    … Whether the parliamentary election will energize more voters to turn out.
    There need be no doubt. The turn out is going to be a record.
    A vast section of citizenry, irrespective of the area of the electorate, believe that we as a whole have turned a corner.
    What is promising is just not the start also the future.

    • 3
      0

      My mind is attuned to think parochially. If I am on the way to mending, thank Anura for having me also in his thoughts.

  • 1
    10

    Wow! Rajan actually wrote a piece without bringing his unashamed pro-tamil and pro-indian biases to light! This one must be commended for not just its style but also for its substance. With this kind of writing by Rajan Thisaranee would not stand a chance. But… as ususal, there are always buts… It is the very position that Rajan has taken, praising AKD, that makes one think twice as to why the sudden change of hearts among the Tamil Speaking Citizens and their supporters and sympathisers towards AKD and NPP!? Time I suppose will tell… storeys that still no one knows. Truth they say is always stranger than fiction. Quite sadly it is much more tragic tooo….

    • 0
      4

      *stories :)

  • 3
    0

    As usual the fine writing of the author tempts me to read the article several times. Putting the foot on the ground is how to face the challenge of delivering promises, express and implied, in the quickest possible time within the limits of revenue generating capacity. Even if all the promises are delivered there is the general expectation which is hard to meet. The simplicity of approach reminds me of Pope Francis. It is public knowledge with regard to the events surrounding the curia prior to the Francisian era and how it was turned around. We hope for the best that there would be no hitches because for quite a long time Sri Lankans in general were quite disgruntled.

  • 3
    0

    WRT state welfare: true the welfare state is a success story. From free education to free health it kept the masses well wed, somewhat educated, and healthy. welfare in itself is not the problem. In fact welfare is very much part of the capitalist society, where there are not only winners and losers, but also characterised by winner takes all principle. Such context requires an effetive social contract that takes care of the losers to some reasonable degree. After all we are all humans. The problem is who and how you pay for the welfare system without any economic growth from one could earn money. Therefore the issue is maintaining a welfare state from printed and borrowed money. None of which can go on forever without economic progress. Meddling with some macroeconomic indices like what Ranil did for the past two years is no substitute for the real economic growth – this is where the acid test lies for AKD and NPP. It will undoubtedly involves fixing wide scale corruption like they promised on every election stage. Its time to walk the talk now.

    • 0
      0

      * fed NOT wed!

  • 8
    0

    Rajan , as you say the parliamentary elections are yet another opportunity for Lanka’s voters to correct their course . Leaving aside all political number games , who’s who…… picking the right person who can bring real change. Regardless of party affiliation the elected should have the ability to work with the rest for the good of his constituents. In that case, parties are pressured to come up with good abled new faces ,or old ones with proven work record , most importantly get rid of the crooks, criminal, chain snatchers, drug peddlers…… the impact is such some have already decided to quit and flee.

  • 4
    0

    “ The voter turnout in the presidential election dropped by 5% nationally from 84% in 2019 to 79% in 2024,”
    The TIME allowed for voting was between 7am and 4pm. I do feel that it should be extended to 7 pm in order to increase the percentage of voters.
    Do we have the statistics of voters age groups? We would like to see more of the youngsters to take part in voting.
    Political parties should not be bribing voters with cash/food/alcohol etc.
    The parliamentary election on the 14/11/2024, I hope to see MPs of GOOD STANDING from younger generation preferably.

  • 3
    0

    Rajan Philips, an excellent, unbiased assessment of the implications of the NPP victory and steps in the right direction during the first days! Also a sound critique of the NPP narrative of 75 years of unmitigated failure.
    “At the minimum, the NPP’s list should put the onus on the other parties to prune their own lists and get rid of all the deadwood and rotten mangos that have been in and out of parliament from as far back as 1970.”
    For example, Sajith needs to retain his economic troika and only those SJB members and Tamil/Muslim partners, who delivered electorates, and chuck all the rest. In a more optimistic vein, several new parties, with competent young women and men, representing Sri Lanka’s multi-ethnic fabric, are set to enter the fray. Hopefully, the electorate will be mature enough to vote for these clean, young professionals/business people, rather than return a fiefdom of unaccomplished, corrupt (mostly old) Sinhala men to power. It is also hoped that a new NPP regime, currently also controlled by (middle-aged) Sinhala men, will be open to sharing the political arena with these diverse, young voices, instead of crushing them for the sake of political expediency.

  • 2
    0

    It was a wonderful piece of writing highlighting the current situation.

    First thing the new Government should do is to lock up all the thieves, thugs and mrderers.

  • 7
    0

    // I would argue that AKD’s historic success is a testament to the resilient possibilities of Sri Lanka’s political system and culture, and it gives the lie to the hyped up narrative that the country has been an unmitigated basket of failures for all the 76 years after becoming independent in 1948 //
    Thanks for this upbeat take. Though it is not too difficult to compile a list of failures to counter this, my own sentiments are well alighed with this. There is much in Sri Lankan society that is not broken, and this may be an opportunity to build on them.

    • 4
      0

      SAV
      Yes.
      This is time to encourage the JVP to get some good things done.
      Despite serious reservations about the JVP, I say that it deserves support for whatever it is doing to unite the people and put the country back on track.

  • 1
    0

    It is reported that RW has sent a letter to the secretary to the president , asking
    for 163 security personnel , 15 kitchen staff , 6 medical profs , 30 umbrellas ,
    computer and a printer . He is asking for his entitlements and president secretary
    might be sending a reply in due course . One can translate this into many areas
    but one thing is evident . ” Go to hell with your reform plans after settling my dues . “
    Back to the article , the author says even without SP and RW split , AKD would have
    got this win . I think that is disputable . Clearly , SP and RW shared one and the same
    vote base that is UNP . RW complained , his SLPP pole vaults didn’t bring in what
    they promised . Disunity among the Old Order demoralised its vote base that was
    already falling into pieces because of their stupidity . Despite all these , SP and RW
    managed to put up a brave face with over five million votes together . Both SP and
    RW got their soup spoilt by adding ingredients that were already expired for sale .
    And at the end , AKD did a real hard job to overcome all these well established
    and hard to imagine hurdles . They now deserve their place that is hard earned .

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