Anura Kumara Dissanayake Comes To The Helm At A Vital Time For The JVP

By Kumar David -February 5, 2014 |

Old leader and the new leader

Prof Kumar David

The JVP has made a good choice in Anura Kumara Dissanayake, not least because he shares with this columnist an excellent set of initials, AKD! He is known for his meticulous work and preparation on issues he raises in public or parliament, he is young (45) and promises stability for 15 to 20 years, and is said to represent the middle position in the party, (as NM did most of the time), so he will be able to bridge internal debates. By all reports he is prepared to rethink past mistakes and the brief reference he made to the national question in his acceptance speech (“We have failed to reach the Tamil people”) may signal better things to come.

A friend quipped to me that he would make a better Leader of the Opposition than the current one! There was a time when parliament was a forum of great tribunes, NM, Colvin, Pieter and SWRD; when they stood up, the chamber hushed; when they spoke, the nation listened. For decades thereafter it was a fish-market whose cacophony dismayed even schoolchildren. Recently Sumanthiran, Anura Kumara and a few others have begun to regain lost ground; in time they too may emerge as worthy tribunes. But I do not know the chap personally – JVP types are reluctant to enter into extended conversations with outsiders – so my impressions are superficial.              Read More