Lyca - Subaskaran Allirajah’s political maneuvering in Sri Lanka?

Shenali Waduge  :  BIGGER TROUBLE LOOMING ....
Subaskaran Allirajah’s political maneuvering in Sri Lanka is far more dangerous than his business ventures alone. His true goal is to become the puppet master behind the scenes, pulling the strings of the country’s political and economic landscape. By infiltrating the media, gaining control of Sri Lanka Telecom, and aligning himself with political parties, Subaskaran seeks nothing less than the balance of power in Parliament—effectively turning Sri Lanka’s democracy into a front for his personal empire.
1. Media Takeover to Control Public Narrative:
Subaskaran’s acquisition of key media outlets in Sri Lanka isn’t just about expanding his entertainment empire; it’s a strategic move to control the flow of information. By dominating the media, he can manipulate the public discourse, silence critics, and promote politicians who align with his interests. His media networks are already softening the public image of corrupt politicians and shaping narratives that serve his agenda. This kind of influence over media is dangerous in any democracy, but in a fragile country like Sri Lanka, it becomes a weapon of mass manipulation.
2. Sri Lanka Telecom: The Crown Jewel of Control:
His interest in acquiring Sri Lanka Telecom is more than a business venture—it’s a power grab. Controlling the nation’s largest telecommunications provider would give him access to private communications, data, and critical infrastructure. In the wrong hands, Sri Lanka Telecom becomes a tool for surveillance, information control, and political blackmail. Subaskaran could monitor politicians, business leaders, and even military communications, positioning himself to influence every major decision in the country. This isn’t just about profits; it’s about domination.
3. Political Party Connections for Parliamentary Power:
Subaskaran isn’t content with just controlling the media and telecom; his political connections aim to secure him the balance of power in Parliament. By funding and supporting political parties, he seeks to create a faction in Parliament that he can control. With enough influence, he could become the kingmaker, deciding who governs the country. His ultimate goal is not just wealth—it’s power, and the ability to manipulate the government to serve his personal interests.
4. Becoming the Puppet Master of Sri Lanka:
If successful, Subaskaran would not need to be the President or Prime Minister. He would be the invisible hand behind every major political decision, controlling politicians through his media outlets, telecom networks, and financial clout. This would effectively make him the puppet master of Sri Lanka, pulling the strings behind the scenes while maintaining a clean public image. He wouldn’t be accountable to the people or the law, making him more dangerous than any politician.
Subaskaran’s moves are not just business or politics as usual. They represent an orchestrated attempt to seize control of Sri Lanka—its media, its telecom infrastructure, and its Parliament. If allowed to continue, he will have the power to decide the country’s future, turning Sri Lanka into a pawn for his global empire. This is not about growth or investment; it’s about one man’s ambition to own an entire nation.

  

Kusal Perera :  Tamil leaders should first bridge their credibility gap
“A major alliance of Tamil political parties in North-East is expected to be launched by business tycoon Subashkaran Allirajah, chairman, British Lyca Mobile. He is reported to have had discussions with former Jaffna district MP and ITAK President Sritharan Sivagnanam in bringing together fractured and divided Tamil politics together.” Sinhala news report on 02 October, 2024
Large, new alliances do not mean they are “People centric”. They only mean few new faces at press conferences with the same rickety old political parties sitting in a different arrangement with new nameboards. In the South they remain as racial as anytime before or even more aggressive, if they believe that would draw more votes.

To say the Sinhala South rejected traditional political parties at the 2024 presidential elections is a big lie. The JVP/NPP platform was traditional in form and content. They stand for the 45-year-old “free market economy” and will be adopting the same IMF programme, the most conventional “free market” formula that had been proved a failure. Their politics based on historically dominant Sinhala-Buddhist politics of the SLFP and the UNP, is traditionally racist. They are firm on “Unitary” State, and would not allow even full implementation of 13A.

In Sri Lanka, when the “Voter” is the same politically illiterate voter, with no idea what the vote is for, traditional electoral politics can only change colour, change faces and political slogans to look novel. The SL voter does not want to know the vote is meant to elect a “government with a development programme for the country” and is not for them to elect any particular individual of their fancy.

Traditional politics can only be challenged with a clearly designed programme for the benefit of the People. What is nevertheless seen even in Northern Tamil politics is “urgent” discussions among marginalised “traditional” leaders as in the South, in putting together a “large alliance” with “big money” for campaigning.

North-East leaderships should accept, their major issue is the large credibility gap between them and the People in post-war politics. Political leaders in North-East rarely identified themselves with victimised and agitating People in post-war politics. They were comfortable supporting the 2015 Sirisena-Wickramasinghe “yahapalana” government on anti-Rajapaksa slogans. ITAK as the dominating leadership in the TNA, backed the Wickramasinghe led government on a false belief, they could draft a “new Constitution” as they wish. Living in such illogical assumptions, the ITAK leadership avoided protests and agitations not wanting to make the Wickramasinghe government uncomfortable.  

The result was, between 2015 August and 2020 elections the TNA lost almost 200,000 votes and 06 of the 16 seats they won in 2015. Nearly 30,000 of them voted EPDP. The TNPF increased its total by nearly 50,000 votes electing one MP and another from the National List. TMVP that was not in the previous parliament collected 67,000 plus votes and a MP seat. Wigneswaran’s new TPNA collected over 50,000 votes and a seat from Jaffna district.

What is also important to note is, Ariyanethiran as the Tamil Common Candidate this 2024 presidential elections, though polling a significant 226,000 plus votes backed by 06 political parties, could not top Jaffna district coming second to Southern Sinhala candidate SP and was unable to poll even half of what SP polled in Vanni district. He was 100,000 plus votes less than SP in his own Batticaloa district polling less than 37,000 votes.

This is the tragedy of a Tamil leadership that took over representing the North-East by default, after the LTTE was wiped out in 2009 May. They took People for granted. Yet in a battered and a tattered society, with People compelled to find answers for their immediate and sensitive issues, integrity of leaderships is tested not at elections but on the ground where People agitate for answers.    

Most important lesson the North-East Tamil political leadership should learn from this debacle therefore is, they have to first bridge this credibility gap between them and the still victimised People in N&E. Political credibility does not come with new alliances, new name boards and campaign money. Credibility comes with a programme that address the issues of N&E People. It’s about a people-centric campaign on People’s issues.

A fortnight ago, I proposed a detailed discussion on “1961 Civil Disobedience Campaign” in N&E led by “Thanthai” Chelva and his ITAK, for present generations to learn what “People’s Politics” is. It was a wholly peaceful one moth long protest begun in February 1961 that brought all State departments and institutes in North & East to a complete halt by ordinary People sitting in front of them. On 02 March, when PM Madam Bandaranayake was questioned in the Senate, why the military has to be deployed in North & East, she accepted “There is no government in North-East.”

Having gone through 02 decades of politics by guns and grenades, I doubt present day Tamil politics understand the strength of such People’s participation in politics. It is rather late, but as the saying goes, it is “better late than ever” to bridge the credibility gap between political leadership and the People on a campaign programme that can be the basis of lobbying and pressurising the elected government to address People’s issues, post-elections. It should therefore include the LLRC recommendation of urgently and completely “demilitarising North-East and establishing an independent civil administration”, immediate repeal of the PTA and withdrawal of the proposed Anti-Terrorism Bill, land disputes to be settled through an independent provincial civil committee and to reconstitute the OMP to provide answers within a year to agitating wives and parents on enforced disappearances.

If that is not what Tamil leaders want, People may go for different options that I do not think would be worth discussing here.    

– Kusal Perera
2024 October 02
(kusalperera.blogspot.com)