Colombo, September 18 (Counterpoint editorial) – When Mahinda Rajapaksa left his palatial 30,000 feet bungalow in Wijerama Mawatha, Colombo and returned to ‘Carlton’ in Tangalle, there was a lot of lamenting that the ‘leader who saved the nation’ was being given step-motherly treatment and being evicted from his home which, incidentally, cost almost half a billion rupees to renovate and could have been rented for Rs. 4.6 million a month.

That was the plan: to create as much a discussion as possible about Mahinda Rajapaksa having to leave his official residence, notwithstanding the fact that the process was completed through an extremely thorough legal process with no less than the Supreme Court endorsing it.

The stubborn fact is that when privileges were being enjoyed by J.R. Jayewardene, D.B. Wijetunge or even Chandrika Kumaratunga, there was hardly a murmur about it. That was because there was some decorum in the way they went about it. Jayewardene and Wijetunge hardly enjoyed any luxuries, being confined to their own homes in retirement. Kumaratunga had her privileges pruned ironically by Mahinda Rajapaksa himself.

The rot set in with Mahinda Rajapaksa and Maithripala Sirisena. The former went about enlarging his mansion and the latter had the decision to allocate a residence for himself, taken as head of the Cabinet while he was still President, annulled by the Supreme Court. This was what the Jathika Jana Balavegaya (JJB) took to election platforms and received a rousing endorsement for.

When this issue was raised in the public domain earlier this year, Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) leaders were quite gung-ho in their responses. ‘Send a letter and Mahinda will leave’ they said. They then ridiculed the government for not having the courage to ‘even send a letter to Mahinda Rajapaksa’.

Merely sending a letter asking Rajapaksa to vacate his residence would have led to a legal tussle because the Presidents’ Entitlements Act No. 04 of 1986 was still in operation at that time. That was a trap set for the government where fortunately, saner counsel prevailed. Based on the recommendations of a committee headed by former Supreme Court Justice K.T. Chitrasiri, the government opted to repeal the old law. This was what was done last week.

Interestingly, although Members of Parliament from the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) and even the more numerous Samagi Jana Balavegaya (SJB) voiced their concerns repealing the Presidents’ Entitlements Act, none (barring Chamara Sampath Dassanayake who was not elected on the SLPP ticket) had the courage to take a stand and vote against it. Even young Namal Rajapaksa chose to play it safe and stay away- as he has done on many occasions.

The SLPP then looked at the next best option. Would Rajapaksa stay put at Wijerama Mawatha and invite the government to evict him forcefully, thereby creating a spectacle that would evoke sympathy or, would he leave his official residence and take the moral high ground? After much deliberation, they opted for the latter but decided that they should try and gain maximum political advantage from it.

That is why crowds gathered, first at Wijerama Mawatha to wish Rajapaksa well and then at ‘Carlton’ to welcome him home. It was political theatre, cleverly orchestrated to convey that Rajapaksa still had a following and that his stock was rising.

The slip though was showing when Rajapaksa posted his true feelings in a social media post accusing the government of ‘political terrorism’ and ‘personal revenge’. He also referred to returning to ‘where it all began’ perhaps unwittingly conceding that he is back at square one, politically.

If Mahinda Rajapaksa, Namal Rajapaksa and the powers that be in the SLPP still believe that they can market Mahinda Rajapaksa, gain sympathy from the masses and ride to power again, they need to think again. If this the school of thought the SLPP is advocating, they are in for a rude shock.

Mahinda Rajapaksa’s place in Sri Lankan history is assured for providing political leadership to end the war against terrorism. Of that, there is no doubt. Just as much, he is also held equally responsible for fostering a culture of cronyism, impunity and corruption on a mega scale that led to the economic collapse of the country in 2022.

Voters will not forget that lapse easily, unless the JJB government messes up its own mandate in style. Therefore, merely harking back to Mahinda Rajapaksa as the man who won the war and expecting that to carry Namal Rajapaksa to victory at the next national elections displays political ignorance of a high degree.

Unfortunately for the SLPP, it appears as if they simply wish to carry on from the point where they left off, selling the Rajapaksa name and hoping it will kindle a tidal wave of support for the party and for Namal Rajapaksa. Namal Rajapaksa also clings on to the same group of people that had their reputations tarnished during his father’s and uncle’s terms of office. There appears to be no introspection as to what went wrong for the SLPP and without that self-reflection, there is obviously no remediation. The party is staying on the same track- with a younger Rajapaksa at the helm- hoping that his surname would do the magic again.

As for Mahinda Rajapaksa, would he now rest on his laurels and retire to enjoy the sunset at Medamulana? Of course, not. That was just Act 1in the drama to create the impression that he has been wronged and evicted, so that the wave of sympathy is activated.

We should await Act 2, where he makes a triumphant return to Colombo when he is able to secure a suitably luxurious residence. He needs to do so for two reasons, firstly to be able to attend to his medical needs and secondly to be in contact with numerous political emissaries. His acolytes are now busy finding him his ‘ideal’ home but they too have to be wary because how Rajapaksa pays for it will be a matter of immense interest. Ah, the games that the Rajapaksas play!

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