The man of the moment to some; others say he is in the right place at the right time. But there are still those who believe false myths about him and continue to heap slander on him in an unprecedented fashion. No-one has been attacked like this since Jesus Christ on the cross! One of Ranil’s most commendable virtues is that he never hits back however great the provocation. This is indeed a mark of greatness that few of his opponents possess. He is a man of vision with a tremendous sense of history, who must be given the chance to nudge those visions into place.

Ranil’s journey in politics has been slow and steady,; one in which he gained immeasurably in both experience and knowledge. He comes from a family with a formidable record in service to the country. His grandfather, Mr. D. R. Wijewardene was among those who fought hard for freedom and began his newspapers with this aim. His mother, Nalini was involved with the Mahila Samithi Movement and was one of the pioneers of the Sinhala Institute of Culture. His father, Esmond, got the ‘golden pen’ award for his role in fighting for the freedom of the press. His brother Shan was a pioneer too, in the electronic media and has helped numerous people from various spheres by giving them exposure. His sister Kshanika, has worked hard for many years to help rural women through her work for Agro Mart Foundation and is now its chairperson. His wife Maithree has done much research and focused on gender issues.


Entered Parliament

After qualifying as a lawyer, he was just 28 years old when he first entered Parliament, in 1977 and was appointed Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs. In 1978, as the first Minister of Youth Affairs and Employment, he was the youngest cabinet minister. His commitment impressed President Jayewardene who gave him the additional portfolio of Education in 1980.

Among his achievements as Minister of Education were initiating radical educational reforms aimed at the qualitative improvement of school education with special emphasis on improving the teaching of English and science. He introduced a school sports division in order to encourage sports which inspires the sense of competition and the pursuit of excellence. He introduced educational TV and computers to schools and insisted on special attention being given to the disabled and the handicapped in schools. Several major improvements in the teaching service were also activated by him, including the criteria of an education administrative service and a Principals service.

It was during his tenure as Minister of Education, that the Colleges of Education and a National Institute of Education were established. A realistic revision of salaries of the education sector was also carried out during this period. In his tenure as Minister of Youth Affairs, he worked tirelessly for youth, including the formulation and implementation’ of the first comprehensive all island youth development programme which promoted youth clubs throughout the country. He reorganized the industrial apprentice training schemes, thus expanding the number of trainees in the country, and was responsible for the establishment of the National Youth Centre.

Ranil’s loyalty and support was there for all leaders of the UNP, and quick to recognize this rare quality was President Premadasa, who appointed him Leader of the House, and Minister of Industries. As President Premadasa’s confidence in him grew, the functions of Science and Technology were added to his ministry, and he was appointed chief media spokesman for the cabinet. He was remarkably efficient as Leader of the House and carried out his duties to perfection. The second round of economic liberalization which began in 1989, was the entire responsibility of Ranil Wickremesinghe His talent as a strategist came to the fore and his strategy for industrialization liberalized the financial sector, de-regularized many other sectors, and privatized state enterprises which were running at a loss. Industrial infrastructure was developed by him and he established many Investment Promotion Zones and industrial estates. The promotion of the establishment of the IT industry in Sri Lanka was also his brainchild.

Perhaps his first date with destiny was in May 1993, when he became Prime Minister after President Premadasa’s tragic death. The highest levels of economic growth in the decade were recorded during this period, and his other achievements were the strengthening of bilateral and multilateral ties with other nations. In November, 1994, he became the Leader of the United National Party and Leader of the Opposition. Many reforms were introduced by him with extensive restructuring at all levels to represent a more equitable balance in terms of ethnicity, gender and youth. As Leader of the United National Party and the United National Front, he was sworn in as the 12th Prime Minister of Sri Lanka on the 9th December, 2001, after successfully leading the Front to victory at the general elections. He was responsible for the Ceasefire agreement, which resulted in the ending of the war, broke down barriers, gave people a sense of freedom and security after many years of war, and encouraged investment. Even President Kumaratunge has hailed this agreement at a recent meeting. Due to the agreement, he was able to galvanize international opinion to assist Sri Lanka in an ambitious rehabilitation programme. No less than 4.5. billion US dollars were pledged by Japan, EU, US and other donors to finance reconstruction.


Great tragedy

A great tragedy for the country, was when President Kumaratunge dissolved Parliament and called for elections, although the UNF commanded a majority in Parliament. Ranil Wickremesinghe had made no promises to the people in the previous election campaign. He asked the people to give him time for two years to put the country right; just as his dreams and that of the people were about to come true, Parliament was dissolved leading to a period of unprecedented suffering for the people , with the soaring cost of living and instability spreading throughout the country. A Churchillian phrase which was both uplifting and inspirational after the war was won; is apt at this time to rise out of the deep and dark depths that this country is in at the moment. ‘-achieved by valour, by perseverance, by perfect discipline, by faultless service, by resource, by skill, by unconquerable fidelity’. To win our own war, against poverty, all kinds of terror, against the law of the jungle, we need this attitude with Ranil Wickremesinghe at the helm.

The fingers that point at Ranil accuse him of not smiling, not patting one on the back, of being arrogant, of surrounding himself with a few loyalists and listening only to them. As one who has known him since he was three years old, I can say with firm conviction that he is far from arrogant. By nature, he is shy, reserved and a private kind of person, who often keeps his feelings under ; ‘house arrest’. His not smiling is more often than not because he is invariably in deep thought, about his vision, his dreams and how to solve the problems of the country in the Herculean task ahead. He does not pat one on the back but at the same time, one can rest assured that he will never stab one in the back!. I do not think there is any Leader of any party who has not been accused of surrounding themselves with a coterie of loyalists. Although he lacks the raven locks of his main opponent, the silver in his hair adds a distinguished aura to his striking good looks.

When one looks at the faults he is accused of, one must realize that these are mere human frailties. He is a devoted and loving son to his mother, a devout Buddhist, but not a rabid or narrow one, as he believes that each person is entitled to the faith of their, choice and the freedom to practise it. He is a supportive husband and a concerned employer. He is one who never tears people to bits, on the platform or otherwise, and never harvests or spreads gossip. Undoubtedly, he has, the necessary attributes for a Leader and a Statesman. Integrity, vision, a sense of history, negotiation skills,, is calm and cool, although there is some steel behind that cool patrician composure. He will never lie to achieve his ends and this is what really matters.

"A time like this demands strong minds, great hearts, true faith and ready hands. Men whom the lust of office does not kill, men whom the lust of spoils cannot buy. Men who possess opinions and a will. Men who love honour. Men who cannot lie."