SJB failed to create a political force people can trust: Chairman Imthiaz Bakeer Markar

• Says SJB’s decision-making and non-decision-making, delays, discipline, and not functioning the party mechanism as a party turned it to a weaker political entity
• Claims party has not developed mechanism to get views from members
• Emphasises SJB should become main force in Opposition when Govt. has over two third majority
• Stresses SJB needs to change its behaviour to be main party in Opposition
• Claims SJB which have effective policies and capable team, people kept trust on a party which only had three seats
• Suggests only way out is to correct SJB’s our mistakes and shortcomings to win people’s trust

Imthiaz Bakeer Markar

Making some bold comments on the downfall of the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) its Chairman and former Parliamentarian Imthiaz Bakeer Markar this week said the party recorded its weakest period in the history during the past months.

Speaking at the Party’s first ever Management Committee since September 2024 Presidential elections, Markar said the SJB, which was created with a lot of dedication, hard work and sacrifices facing various difficulties in the past, had fallen to a significant downfall mainly due to political experiences such as decision-making and non-decision-making, delays, discipline and not functioning the party mechanism as a party.

He said as a political movement, the SJB must do justice to all the party members, including public representatives, organisers, activists, who have dedicated their political lives to the SJB and spent their time, money, all their efforts and sacrifices not to continue to be in the Opposition.

“We have not efficiently obtained their ideas and contributions. The party has not developed a proper mechanism to obtain their views. We have consistently seen the management committee and senior officials not taking the views from them when important decisions are being taken,” he emphasised.

The SJB’s Management Committee meeting deliberated the Party’s way forward for the future and restructuring the party to face forthcoming elections.

“Although we initially hoped to create a new political force that the people could trust, different from the traditional political culture that Sri Lankans rejected, we have failed to do so. Most of our decisions taken were seen by the people similar to a traditional political movement, not as a new progressive democratic force that we had hoped for,” he claimed.

Markar further said that when Sri Lanka was facing a severe economic crisis during former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa Government, despite having good policies and a capable team, most people did not trust the main Opposition but they kept their trust on a party which only had three seats. 

Meanwhile, he opined that when a Government had more than two third majority in the Parliament, there is a national requirement to have a strong Opposition and fulfilling that responsibility naturally falls to the SJB as the main party in the Opposition.

“Now we have a serious responsibility, which has the task of maintaining democracy and contributing towards the betterment of the country’s people. To fulfil that responsibility, we need to change the way we have behaved in the past,” the SJB Chairman said that it was in this context that he sent a letter on 2 December 2024 to the SJB Leader and the General Secretary requesting to strengthen the party machinery.

Markar said that before this letter, he had proposed in a similar discussion to appoint an independent committee to investigate the reasons for the party’s setbacks to strengthen the party machinery but it was overlooked and he didn’t receive a proper response to his correspondents, so far.

“As the main force of the Opposition, for the benefit of our people and to maintain democracy in the country, the only way out is to correct our mistakes and shortcomings and change in a way that the people can trust the SJB,” he said emphasising the need to bring back the SJB to its initial glory.

But he cautioned that if the SJB didn’t understand this need seriously and take appropriate measures as a party without delay and firmly, it would do injustice to the SJB’s membership who trust the party.