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| Lalith Athulathmudali |
Eighteen years is too short a period in human history; but not so short for human memory. It fails. To mark an indelible imprint in the minds of the great mass, withstanding the ravages of time, he should belong to the rare few who adorned history with distinct contributions. Such was he: Lalith Athulathmudali
Having enjoyed the distinction of being the first from the remote Pasdunkorale to enter the hallowed profession of law as a Barrister, D.D. Athulathmudali intended Lalith, his eldest son, to follow him. Young Lalith was sent to Royal College where he excelled in both studies and in sports.
He obtained B.A.(Jurisprudence) from Oxford and enrolled as a Barrister of Gray's Inn. After a short stint as a lecturer in law at the Singapore University, University of Alahabad and the Hebrew University, he entered the prestigious Harvard University, where he obtained his LL.M. His performance at Harvard was so brilliant that his thesis was accepted to the permanent collection of the university.At Oxford he secured the rare honour of being elected the Treasurer, the Librarian, the Secretary and to cap it all, the President of the Oxford Union. This is ample testimony to his oratorical prowess, debating skill and to his leadership potential, which he displayed and put to abundant use in later life. S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike, the great liberal democrat and intellectual watched the dazzling star that enter into the ken and honoured his talents by bestowing a scholarship, which, perhaps, was the innovating factor that prompted him to establish the Mahapola Scholarship Scheme, to award thousands of scholarships to university students, in his later life.
moreOratorical prowess
In 1964 he was enrolled as an Advocate. With all the endowments that go to make a successful lawyer (i.e. the ability to master facts, profound knowledge of the law, swift and ready wit, command of the English language, oratorical prowess and debating skill and the capacity for hard work) he was quick to gain recognition and rise in the profession. He was versatile and was quite at home in any court, civil, criminal or labour - original or appellate. In 1985, he was appointed a President's Counsel.
His dabble in Union politics at Oxford was an indication that he would take a plunge into it when once he returned home. The State Councillor father too, would have kindled an interest in his formative years. In 1973, he entered the political arena and flexed his muscles at Agalawatta like a gladiator of the UNP. He was no stranger to Agalawatta, but the seat was a Marxist stronghold represented by a brilliant lawyer and an intellectual (Dr. Colvin R De Silva, a veteran politician). He traversed the length and breadth climbing rugged mountains, descending steep hills and crossing muddy streams. People flocked around him, for they were happy to have one of their kind. The Marxist fortress was cracked; the foundation for the UNP victory was laid. For some mysterious reason the party leadership lifted Lalith from Agalawatta and planted him in the newly carved out Ratmalana; for him it was alien soil.
Trade Ministry
It was a seat in which there was a great concentration of workers. The workers of the Railway workshop and of many factories resided there. He, being an able labour lawyer, had the disadvantage of having appeared for the employers. His opponents were quick to brand him as a capitalist. Caste too cast a dark shadow, an obstacle, which was not too easy to surmount. It was the time to deploy and display organizing ability and diplomatic skill of which he was abundantly rich. Despite all odds he secured a convincing victory at the 1977 General Election and entered Parliament.
In 1977 he was given the Ministry of Trade; he had no choice. The Ministry of Trade, hitherto, had been a veritable doom. No Trade Minister, except perhaps R.G. Senanayake, enjoyed popularity. All the sins of governments,(i.e. rising prices, shortage of goods, malfunctioning of the distributive network etc.) are heaped upon the Ministry of Trade.
In fact the Ministry of Trade played a major role in bringing down the 1970-77 government. Goods were scarce. The limited stocks were distributed through the CWE and Co-operative outlets. People had to languish in queues for long hours. The distributive system laid paralyzed. That was the cross he had to carry. He had to salvage the country, relieve the poor and vindicate his honour. It was only the combination of academic brilliance and adroitly deployed pragmatism that could deal with such an intricate situation.
Open economy
He was a great protagonist of the open economy. This fluid concept is being variously defined and loosely applied. For him it was not the unbridled freedom of the wild ass but a disciplined march of a harnessed stallion. Human effort cannot be circumscribed within the pages of Financial Regulations and Administrative Rules. Government officers who are sticklers for adherence to such rules have stifled their innovative faculty; they should not be assigned the running of a business. Liberalization was the answer.
Entrepreneurial skill and capacity of the private sector had to be mobilized. Business was thrown open. Market abounded in commodities. The State-run institutions like the CWE, the State Trading Corporation and Salusala revamped their management systems to keep pace with the advancing private enterprise. Thus having reciprocated the State institutions geared themselves to render service as efficient as the private establishments: the consumer was the ultimate beneficiary.
Business establishments
Insurance was a stumbling block in the march towards economic recovery. Having enjoyed two decades of monopoly, lethargy had set in, in the Insurance Corporation of Sri Lanka. This is too technical and sensitive a subject to be thrown open, unblinkingly. There must be an assessment of the availability of capital and more so the technical know-how. The market was not yet ripe for a throw open. This is the hour when creative talents should be tapped. A new concept was mooted; fusion of capital and security of the State with private sector expertise: thus was born the National Insurance Corporation with the selection of seven reputed companies as partners in canvassing business and settling claims. Innovations set in. The service was quick and courteous.
A sizeable slice of the market share was wrested by the infant corporation. The ICSL, the giant, felt the pinch. It was loosing its business and moreover its men. It awoke from its long slumber and mustered its energies to meet the challenge.
Courtesy - Daily News
