One of the brightest young stars in Sri Lanka’s political firmament, Milinda Moragoda, 39, who polled the second highest number of preference votes in the Colombo district (second to Ranil Wickremesinghe) at his first shot at an election in Dec. 2001 shared some thoughts with the Sunday Island in a recent interview days before the upcoming election.

Moragoda is widely credited for crafting the policy strategies underpinning the peace effort and mobilizing global support for these policies. As deputy minister for policy development and implementation under the prime minister, he had a leading role in advancing the economy. Some excerpts from the interview:

You came into parliament for the first time in 2000 on the UNP national list. But you chose the harder road to the legislature by fighting an election the next time round. Why?

The prime minister gave me the opportunity of building a base by bringing me to parliament on the national list and appointing me UNP organizer for Colombo East.

The election route is what matters in politics and I enjoy both the people to people contact and doing my best for those I represent in the legislature.

What attracted you to politics in the first place?

I was invited by President Premadasa and Mr. Ranil Wickremesinghe who was then Industries Minister to assist them. My work was mostly in policy. Subsequently, I got more involved with Ranil in the political area. I strongly felt the need to see for myself whether I could make a difference in the politics and governance of the country. It’s very easy to give advice and difficult to do things and I thought I must give it my best shot. So here I am.

Where do you think you’ve got to make that difference?

In the political culture of the country. That the reason for the breakdown of our society and that’s what we must urgently address. I’m grateful for the confidence the PM had in me and I hope I have not disappointed him or the thousands who voted for me. The only way to repay them was to do my best and I hope my best was good enough.

What was your approach to the peace process?

A warm heart and a cool head. Those are not my words but what President Kim Dae Jung of South Korea said when he first went to the North. A warm heart must reflect sincerity. And a cool head is necessary in working towards a win – win solution for all. An Indian leader I said this too added a corollary saying "you must also take a deep breath as well because you’re going to need it!"

And have you achieved something in that effort?

We’ve had our successes and there have been the rough patches. The cease-fire, of course was the major success but that was a first phase. There was a realization on both sides of the divide that on the other side also were our people and we saw the thousands who visited Jaffna, made pilgrimages to Nagadipa. There was two way traffic in both directions once the barriers were down.

Many people have been impressed by your speeches. You have kept your promise that you won’t indulge in personal attacks and said much that has provoked thought and given hope. The speeches are also well crafted. Do you write them yourself?

I’m afraid I can’t do it all. But I’ve given the ideas and the thoughts and many people have helped write the speeches I’ve made in public life. I’m glad you like them.

It’s been said that intrinsic ability, a good education (Moragoda was educated in Sri Lanka, Europe and the US, holds an MBA from the Institute of Management Development in Switzerland and served an year’s fellowship at the Centre For International Affairs at Harvard) and money can get you places. Is that the secret of your success?

I don’t know where I qualify by the criteria you mention. My grandfather (former Central Bank Governor and business leader N. U. Jayawardene) certainly gave me a base. He came from the wrong side of the tracks, his father being the resthouse keeper at Hambantota. He was a self-made man. President Premadasa once told me "never forget where your grandfather began his journey." I won’t. If you have commitment and reasonable competence, you can succeed. It’s not who you are that matters but what you are. That’s the kind of society I’d like to help create.

What are the changes we need most urgently?

A change in the political culture, an end to the violence and corruption. We have to get away from this very raw power struggle. I think we need to go back to first-past-the-post combined with a district list system and the state funding elections.

Finally Mr. Moragoda, it’s widely perceived that there are very little difference between the SLFP and UNP in terms of policy and objective. Only the people are different. Your comments?

The SLFP is a family based party. The UNP has grown out of it. There are those who think that the JVP can improve the PA. Can they keep everybody honest? I don’t think so. The old left couldn’t do it. If the JVP moves into the mainstream, the third force will have to come from somewhere else. Who is going to prevail, the SLFP or the JVP?