The debate about the replacement of the Party Leader of the UNP goes on

 

This ongoing saga has taken a nasty turn where the Sirasa TV has gone on a vendetta to attack the party leader of the UNP with a vengeance never seen in the history of Sri Lanka. What is more, there has not been one word uttered by the Leader to these defamatory statements as he feels that they do not deserve a reply as they are not based on logic, but on a personal vendetta. The party faithful who back the leader want him to go to the Media to denounce this tirade of charges and defend himself, something he is not willing to do even at this stage.

The public on the other hand being hugely gullible is willing to accept what they see on TV without any enquiry into the why’s and wherefores of the merits and therefore a media consensus has arisen that the party leader should go sooner rather than later. The latest salvo being shot by Sajith saying the full complement of the UNP working committee should be immediately appointed.

I cannot see anything arising from these media circuses as that is purely what they are without any substance to back them up. This provided a lot of fodder of the papers and people to talk around the dinner tables and boozing moments.The assertion is that the working committee does not represent the will of the people in the party. That is a hugely contentious issue which depending on who you talk to and who you include as the party faithful will give you a different result.

How should this apparent stalemate be resolved? There is no sign that Ranil is about to turn in the towel. I am told privately that he would like to leave the post, but does not know who he should hand over the reigns to. He feels other contenders will break the party apart. The unfounded allegations that gain traction in Colombo 7 houses about being in cahoots with Mahinda does not help with being objective in this important page in the country’s history, when this country is about to fall into the abyss of a brutal dictatorship bought for money.

In light of all this I firmly believe despite the reservations one has about Ranil, he is the best the opposition can currently throw against the government, and if the party decides to drop the infighting and give him a chance, he can lead the anti-government demonstrations, the need for the moment to gain the moral high ground(no other person in opposition has less skeletons under the cupboard than Ranil) as a clear alternative to the devious, manipulative, and opportunistic leader who is running this country to the new lows in all criteria except in lying which has risen to a new high. Let us hope in the days ahead the concentration of all efforts will be against the cavalier behavior of a government bent on destruction!