Midweek Politics: Breaching The Last Line Of Defence
By Dharisha Bastians -
Dharisha Bastians
On Saturday (6) evening at Temple Trees, President Mahinda Rajapaksamade a strange proclamation to a few foreign correspondents he was hosting to dinner. Asked if he was going to watch the much-anticipated ICC World T20 Final between Sri Lanka and the West Indies, President Rajapaksa quipped that on two occasions he had gone to the finals and on both occasions, the Sri Lankan team had failed. “Now I prefer to watch cricket on TV,” he explained.
The fact is that the President did attend the Lankan cricket team’s final matches in the Caribbean in 2007 for the World Cup final and more recently to Mumbai when the Sri Lankans lost the World Cup to India. A superstitious President’s House would naturally be wary of such trends.
In the Presidential box
Shock and awe registered on the faces of spectators at the T20 final at R. Premadasa Stadium last Sunday therefore, when the ESPN camera crew zoomed in on President Rajapaksa seated in his special box just minutes after the fall of the first Sri Lankan wicket with Tillekaratne Dilshan being bowled out by S.P. Narine.
Also watching the finals that day was UNP Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe who was seated in the Minister’s box along with Colombo Mayor A.J.M. Muzammil and Sports Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage.
Also watching the finals that day was UNP Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe who was seated in the Minister’s box along with Colombo Mayor A.J.M. Muzammil and Sports Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage.
A short while after President Rajapaksa landed at the Stadium, as Sri Lanka began their run chase of what seemed to be a reachable total, Minister Aluthgamage went over to greet him. A few minutes later, he returned to the Minister’s box and informed Wickremesinghe that the President had invited him to his special box. Also present in the President’s box at R. Premadasa was Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa and several other close associates of President Rajapaksa. Wickremesinghe agreed to join his political rival and the pair were pictured together during the first half of the Sri Lankan innings.
But sometime during the Lankan innings, when it became clear that the team was probably going to lose the cup despite Nuwan Kulasekera’s 11th hour bid to get Sri Lanka back in the game, the President left the grounds.
It was widely speculated that had the Lankan cricketers clinched the cup, the Head of State would have descended to the grounds to present the trophy to Skipper Mahela Jayawardane. Poetically, Jayawardane had been presented his Man of the Match trophy by Hambantota MP Namal Rajapaksa at the semi finals on Thursday (4) and his father would naturally be the presenter of the trophy at the team’s ultimate victory. But this was not to be. The only Sri Lankan representation on the presentation panel were Jayantha Dharmadasa and Aravinda De Silva.
In the end not a single Sri Lankan political figure was visible at the presentation ceremony, raising speculation that none of the Government politicians wanted to be associated with the loss.
All in all, Sunday 7 October, was a pretty bad day – for Sri Lankan cricket and democracy in Sri Lanka.
But sometime during the Lankan innings, when it became clear that the team was probably going to lose the cup despite Nuwan Kulasekera’s 11th hour bid to get Sri Lanka back in the game, the President left the grounds.
It was widely speculated that had the Lankan cricketers clinched the cup, the Head of State would have descended to the grounds to present the trophy to Skipper Mahela Jayawardane. Poetically, Jayawardane had been presented his Man of the Match trophy by Hambantota MP Namal Rajapaksa at the semi finals on Thursday (4) and his father would naturally be the presenter of the trophy at the team’s ultimate victory. But this was not to be. The only Sri Lankan representation on the presentation panel were Jayantha Dharmadasa and Aravinda De Silva.
In the end not a single Sri Lankan political figure was visible at the presentation ceremony, raising speculation that none of the Government politicians wanted to be associated with the loss.
All in all, Sunday 7 October, was a pretty bad day – for Sri Lankan cricket and democracy in Sri Lanka.
