Parliament pays tribute late Minister Rukman Senanayake

By Yohan Perera   

Parliament yesterday paid tribute to late Minister Rukman  Senanayake who passed away recently. Mr Senanayake is the grandson of Late  Prime Minister D. S. Senanayake and a nephew of late Prime Minister  Dudley Senanayake.   

“Mr. Senanayake was a great environmentalist and a wildlife lover. He was bold enough to halt illegal mining of earth in  Dankotuwa in the Puttalam District for the pottery industry, which  created an environmental hazard in the area,” Leader of the House Bimal  Rathnayake who moved the condolence vote said.   

 He came into active politics contesting the Dedigama by-election in 1973 after the demise of his uncle, late Prime Minister  Dudley Senanayake. He came to Parliament from the United National Party  (UNP) that year. He left UNP a few years later and formed Eksath Lanka  Janatha Party (ELJP). He re-joined UNP in 1989 and became the Chairman  and the Assistant Leader of the party in 2008.   

Leader of Opposition Sajith Premadasa said the late  Minister was a person who always embraced gentlemanly politics. “Mr.  Senanayake played a leading role in important political discussions.  Accordingly, he participated in discussions between the Ranasinghe  Premadasa government and the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) in 1989  which was aimed at convincing the latter to give up the arms struggle,”  Mr. Premadasa said.   

“The late minister used his skills in photography to promote wildlife tourism in Sri Lanka,” he added.   
MP Dayasiri Jayasekera recalled how the late MP made an  effort to convert UNP into a vibrant party. Mr. Senanayake made a great  effort to build future leaders for the UNP. “I can recall the role  played by Mr. Senanayake to change the UNP leadership.”  

 MP Rauff Hakeem recalled the electoral alliance which the Sri  Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) got into with ELJP led by Mr. Senanayake in  1989. “We contested the General Election 1989 under our own symbol in  some areas, while we contested together with ELJP in districts such as  Kegalle,” he said.