Sirisena’s assassination saga The ‘plot’ is now interesting

President Maithripala Sirisena who was moving freely with the citizenry would see his movements being curtailed following the much talked about threat to his life 

All of us, unless enlightened or spiritually inclined, fear death. Spiritual guru the late Bhagavan Shree Rajneesh (Osho) once said that death is blissful for those who have lived life to the fullest. But death in the political scene is something quite different to how life ends in the spiritual realms of human life.

When life is snuffed out in the political scene through killings or untimely deaths, we are aghast. Right now there is talk about there being assassination plots to kill the president and the former defence secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa. The story about the assassination plot gathered momentum as the days rolled by and drew the attention of Indian Premier Narendra Modi because claims had been allegedly made by President Sirisena that India’s Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) may be involved in it. 

• All this begs the question why the Government doesn’t clear the air about the assassination plot
• He has also said that there are Cabinet secrets that should not be disclosed to the public
• Sirisena is wise enough to know that this country has had a history of heads of state being assassinated

From what we have read in the newspapers we fathom that Sirisena is concerned about the threat to his life. That is natural because there is much for him to achieve as the head of the Yahapalana regime. He is not yet ready to ‘go’ because so little has been done during the tenure of this utility Government. This is largely because of the tug-of-war between the president and the premier; whose henchmen form the majority of the government. 

Sirisena is a Buddhist who has lived an exemplarily life as a citizen of this country. But the luxury life that politics offers and the power vested upon him as president probably make him view death as something that should be postponed. We all must go when the time comes to bid adieu to planet earth. But a politician may think differently.

ultimatum 

If there is anyone who put the subject of death so early into the mind of President Sirisena it’s whistle blower Namal Kumara. The revelation of an assassination plot not only makes Sirisena intricately plan his future moves, but also highlights that wonderful lesson of Gautama Buddha that ‘all good products come with a shelf life’. Sirisena, a product of Pollonaruwa, rose to stardom in 2015 when the UNP and key members of the opposition united to field him as the presidential candidate under the guidance of the late Ven. Sobitha Thera. 

This assassination talk also serves Sirisena an ultimatum that its now or never for him. Getting bumped off or being unseated as President right now might have similar effects on Sirisena’s career. Sirisena must find the strength to wade through the glue he is stuck in. On one side there is an economy that’s crashing and on the other there is a support base (As in the vote base) for him which is fast diminishing. Right now the assassination talk has cost him dearly because India, the accused, is badly hurt. According to media reports a scheduled press conference which was supposed to brief the fourth estate about the Government’s response to the assassination story had been canceled at the eleventh hour. 

A prominent Government minister had said that the news that the Indian journalist was fed with, regarding the president’s alleged statement about the plot to kill him, was false. All this begs the question why the Government doesn’t clear the air about the assassination plot by having a press conference, releasing an official statement or by the President himself using the Government media arm and addressing the nation. We have read so much about Government officials working overtime to communicate with New Delhi in its attempts to do damage control now. Should the Sri Lankan citizens be left in the dark during a time of great concern like this? 

Gotabaya putting a police entry with regard to the plot to assassinate him is a good enough happening to make Sri Lankan citizens demand to know the truths about this whole episode!

Sirisena sees the bits of information leaked to the press from what transpired at a Cabinet meeting as an attempt to tarnish his image and portray him as an enemy of India. It’s now known that president Sirisena was not in favour of the East Container Terminal of the Colombo Port to be developed with India’s help. The Indian premier had meanwhile conveyed his displeasure over some of the Indian funded projects in Sri Lanka facing a delay in completion. Uninformed citizens of this country are forced to guess or listen to the speculative stories that are doing the rounds that Modi and Sirisena are drifting apart in their relationship. But the positive news from Colombo is that Sirisena has taken the initiative to strengthen ties with India and Modi. 

Uninformed citizens

Minister Amaraweera has said that he would take to task the four ministers who conveyed vital information about the Cabinet meeting to an Indian journalist, who works for The Hindu newspaper. He has also said that there are Cabinet secrets that should not be disclosed to the public. Isn’t the news about the plot to assassinate the president important enough for the people to know? Gotabaya putting a police entry with regard to the plot to assassinate him is a good enough happening to make Sri Lankan citizens demand to know the truths about this whole episode! 

Sirisena is wise enough to know that this country has had a history of heads of state being assassinated or there being attempts at taking their lives. The killing of President Ranasinghe Premadasa was master-minded by the LTTE and we all know that a good number of the tiger rebels were trained in India. We also know that over the years the Tamil Nadu Government had a soft corner for the tiger rebels. At one time during the civil war in the north it is said that LTTE Leader Velupillai Prabakaran went into hiding in India. (This is stated in the book ‘Thiyuna Asipathaka Sevana Yata penned by Swaminathan Wimal). India’s interests in creating trouble for Sri Lanka dates back to the time of the island’s kings. Hence the talk about the Indian national named M.Thomas claiming that he knew of the plot to assassinate the president leaves us wondering whether the adversities that the president faces gathered momentum with the aid of political winds that are blowing from India.

President Sirisena’s Government has to do much investigation to get to the bottom of all this. It’s reported in newspapers that Sirisena believes that Modi might not be aware of the alleged assassination plot. He believes that the Indian national could be a RAW agent. But above all the man who walked freely among crowds with the least security during the past two and a half years has now invited the thought of death to his mind. 

Independent observers believe that these developments will hamper Sirisena’s election plans for 2020. Even if the story about the assassination plot will take time to be proved, one thing is clear; those opposing the president have begun playing a psychological game to unnerve him. President Sirisena must revise the clock to 2010 and observe how Mahinda Rajapaksa held his nerve till the last minute to defeat Sarath Fonseka at the Presidential Elections. 

In that election the person who could handle pressure better won in the end. Even if Sirisena survives the assassin’s bullet he has to negotiate the challenges that are thrown at him by his own’men’ in the Yahapalana Government. The latter seems a tougher task than the first for Sirisena!