Wednesday Nov 13, 2024
Wednesday Nov 13, 2024
Friday, 21 March 2014 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
Party District Organiser in the East. I worked closely with Ranil Wickremesinghe for several years and supported him during the 2005 presidential election. However, later I realised that he was playing into the hands of the SLMC leaders. I saw Wickremesinghe sidelining certain individuals.
People no longer have faith in the UNP. The so-called diehard supporters have told me that as a protest vote they will vote for either Sarath Fonseka’s party or the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna.
Q: Why did you join the All Ceylon Makkal Congress?
A: The Leader of All Ceylon Makkal Congress is Minister Rishard Bathiudeen. When he invited me to work with him, I thought I should grab this opportunity. Minister Bathiudeen is a leader with a strong voice for the Muslims. He works according to a political strategy and he is a hardworking politician. The amount of work he has carried out in the north and east is commendable. He supports all three communities. I am privileged to work with Minister Bathiudeen.
"I am impressed with the policies, principles and leadership put forward by the All Ceylon Makkal Congress. They not only have a solid vision to serve the people irrespective of race and religion but also have a clear set of action plans to be implemented in order to achieve their vision. They have already proven themselves beyond doubt in the north and east
It is due to lack of professionalism and intellectual involvement that the political setup in the country is so weak. As politicians we should not just focus on helping people close to elections in order to gain their votes but also focus on building a sustainable model for long term economic growth and infrastructural development. This is where I feel that professionals like me can play a role if elected. My professional exposure and expertise in finance, administration, management and human resources could be put to best use if I am elected to represent the Western Provincial administration"
Although I had an intention of entering the political domain in the recent past, the irrational selection of candidates to contest under the so-called major parties constantly discouraged me from coming forward. Even today certain candidates have been purely selected based on certain trivial criteria such as inherited political influence, financial backing, strong media backing, etc. It is also safe to say that newcomers like me have the best chance of being elected when contesting from a new party. It is only strategically correct and wise that I come forward under this party.
I am impressed with the policies, principles and leadership put forward by the All Ceylon Makkal Congress. They not only have a solid vision to serve the people irrespective of race and religion but also have a clear set of action plans to be implemented in order to achieve their vision. They have already proven themselves beyond doubt in the north and east.
Q: How does your party differ from the other various political parties that represent Muslim community?
A: I personally feel that traditionally the Muslims have always been rather divided on their political opinion. Some of them are loyal to the UNP, some to the UPFA, some to the SLMC and some to the other political parties as well. The All Ceylon Makkal Congress is here only because the so-called Muslim representatives from these other parties have clearly failed in their duties in the recent past. None of them came forward to 
represent the Muslims during the chaos caused by extremists. Our presence as All Ceylon Makkal Congress is thus a matter of need and certainly does not create division.
The SLMC could be strong in the east but they cannot engage in communal politics in Colombo. We are a small minority. We should not run into problems. We should not internationalise the problems that could have been sorted out peacefully within the community. I am not a mouthpiece of the Mahinda Rajapaksa Government, but I strongly feel that he is tactfully handling issues. This is why he is having a divergent group of people and trying to manage them and please them.
Q: What are your chances of getting elected to the Western Provincial Council?
A: I am confident that I will get elected. People are willing to elect a fresh candidate regardless of established party loyalties, whom they feel has a strong professional background and proven track record in management, finance and administration. I am banking a lot on the Muslims currently residing in Colombo. Apart from that I have also communicated my interests and objectives to various non-political organisations during the last couple of weeks. They too were confident and convinced that I could serve the people with honesty and integrity as I have more to lose than to gain by coming up for election, unlike the majority of those contesting this time.
Q: Do you feel that professionals like you can make a difference in the current political setup?
A: It is due to lack of professionalism and intellectual involvement that the political setup in the country is so weak. As politicians we should not just focus on helping people close to elections in order to gain their votes but also focus on building a sustainable model for long term economic growth and infrastructural development. This is where I feel that professionals like me can play a role if elected. My professional exposure and expertise in finance, administration, management and human resources could be put to best use if I am elected to represent the Western Provincial administration.
Q: Why are you the right person to represent your party at the Western Provincial Council?
A: I believe that there is a lot of room for improvement in education and health, which are the primary sectors that fall under the provincial administration setup, along with certain other areas of concern. The primary reason as to why these sectors are weak is because there is no solid foundation or methodology to direct the funds allocated appropriately. We need to look at avenues of generating more funds for these sectors whilst also trying to ensure that the funds allocated are translated into an effective output at the end of the day. It is important that we identify means of circulating the funds coming into the system as much as possible in order to ensure that we make best use of the resources available. This is of course easier said than done but what is most important is that we walk the talk and I am confident of this.
