A LEADING MAN:

QUALITIES OF Gamini Dissanayake

Premasara EPASINGHE

The good name of Gamini Dissanayake, will be remembered, so long as the River Mahaweli waters the farmlands of Sri Lanka and till the noble game of cricket is played in Sri Lanka.

A greatness of a man is judged by the powerful and pervasive influence he exercises for the good of his generation and by the certainty of his influence on the generations yet unborn. Such people are National Leaders. To achieve this, they must be blessed with leadership qualities. Leadership is one of the most enduring human responsibilities. Leaders must take their ability to craft a vision, inspire action and empower others.

Gamini Dissanayake

The first milestone on the journey to leadership, not only we demand leaders to be credible, but also, they be forward looking and that they have a sense of direction and a vision for the future. If you study leadership in depth, you would observe, the first and key principle of leadership is between a leader and a follower. Without a follower, there is no one to lead.

Gamini Dissanayake was a visionary. He was passionate, creative, flexible, inspiring, innovative courageous, imaginative, initiates change, experimental. This fine human being, possessed a charming, attractive personality and personal power and charisma. He is a man to inspire and motivate men. He had the ability to influence people toward the attainment of a country’s goal. He was a fine democratic leader, who delegate authority to others, encourage participation and relies on expert and referent power to manage subordinates.

Legal career

Gamini Dissanayake’s life was not a bed of roses. Some conspired against him. He braved the weather, displayed confidence, endurance in mental. He possessed the physical, spiritual stamina, displayed calmness under stress.

He possessed the ten commandments of leadership too. They are search out challenging opportunities to change, grow and improve; experiment, take risks and learn from accompanying mistakes; envision and uplifting and ennobling future; enlist others in a common vision by appealing to their values, interests, hopes and dreams; foster collaboration by promoting cooperative goals and building trust; strengthen people by giving power away, providing choice, developing competence, assigning critical tasks and offering visible support; set to example by behaving in ways that are consistent with shared values; achieve small wins that promote consistent progress and build commitment; recognise individual contributions to the success of every project; celebrate team accomplishment regularly.

To mark the 18th commemoration of Gamini Dissanayake’s death anniversary, the Gamini Dissanayake Foundation launched a publication titled: ‘A Leader Par Excellence - Gamini Dissanayake Reminiscences’, at the BMICH under the patronage of High Commissioner for India in Sri Lanka. Dr Wickrema Weerasooriya Insurance Ombudsman of Sri Lanka, delivered the keynote address.

“The secret of a leaders’ greatness is simple. Do better work than any other in your field, and keep on doing it stated a world renowned scholar Wilfred A Peterson. Gamini Dissanayake in his brilliant career, did better work than others. He was always a man of honesty and integrity.

Gamini Dissanayake was born on March 20, 1942. He was the eldest son of a family of seven children, to Parliamentarian, Minister Andrew Dissanayake and Welagedera Samaratunga Kumarihamy of Kotmale. Born and bred in the hills of Kotmale, his basic values were cultivated in the rural milleu, social surrounding and environment.

He entered Trinity College, Kandy, Sri Lanka, in 1948. In 1961, he entered the Law College and in 1966 took oaths as an Attorney-at-Law at the age of 24. He ended his legal career as a President’s Counsel. In 1970, he won his fathers’ constituency at the age of 27. He was unseated in 1971 in an election petition. Later, won back his seat, proving his capabilities as a campaigner. He was an excellent organiser, good judge of men and character. He always picked the correct person to the correct job.

Leader of the Opposition

In 1977, Gamini Dissanayaka was made Minister of Irrigation, Power and Highways at the age of 35. His greatest, historic achievement was the administration of River Mahaweli, to telescope the 30 year plan to diversity the gigantic river in six years, thus taking the waters of the county’s longest river to the farmlands of the dry zone.

In Ranasinghe Premadasa’s government, he served as the Minister of Plantation Industry. The formation of Democratic United National Party was history. He decided to take a break from political life, left for the prestigious University of Cambridge to pursue his academic career in development studies. He was a vociferous reader. Later, he joined the UNP once again, and later served as the dynamic Leader of the Opposition and became the Presidential candidate until he met with his untimely death while addressing a election meeting at Thotalanga.

Gamini was a tough disciplinarian with a mild heart. He inherited a smile in charismatic style that could even convince any opponent to follow his path.

He was a Democratic Leader; a good listener; who delegated authority to others. Magnanimity is another great quality of a leader. He was never self effacing. Gamini Dissanayake’s philosophy was to ‘put country before self’. His philosophy was to serve the people. He always believed, all human beings should live together, though they emanate from different racial stock and religious backgrounds. His vision was to see people live together in equality.

Cricket and Gamini

Gamini Dissanayake was a brilliant Orator. His orations, speeches were mesmerizing; language so rich and impeccable. He held his masses spellbound. In Parliament too he was a fine debater.

The delegates, who attended the ICC conference at Lords, the ‘Epic centre of cricket’, were fascinated by Dissanayake’s speech. The facts placed before were so convincing that they could no longer exclude Sri Lanka from test arena. It was due to Gamini Dissanayake’s discerning intelligence, noble charismatic personality, clarity of speech, brilliant eloquence, tact and efficiency, far-sighted vision and wisdom, Sri Lanka gained test status in cricket. His words spoken with such elation, enthusiasm, echoed and re-echoed the long room at Lords, like the waves of a sea dashing against the seashore.

The cricketing fraternity of the world was virtually won over. Immediately delegates from Pakistan and India proposed and seconded the resolution to grant test status to Sri Lanka. He was the Prince of Kotmale, but a king and a fine administrator of the great game.

Further, he was responsible for the construction of the Headquarters of Sri Lanka cricket, Indoor complex at NCC grounds, and he transformed the historic Asgiriya Grounds as a test venue.

For the benefit of cricketers, he invited Les Lenhem, Garfield, Sobers as coaches in early 1980s and invited Dr Rudi Webster, the famous Sports Psychologist to address our First Test Team on ‘Motivation, concentration, pressure leadership’.

Until such time cricket is played in Sri Lanka. Gamini Dissanayake’s name will live with cricket.

Gamini Dissanayake’s dream was to establish a nation, where people will not be judged by colour, caste, creed or religion. His Philosophy was very much similar to the Great Man of the 20th century Nelson Mandela - One Country - One Nation.

Dutiful husband and father

His beloved wife Mrs Srima Dissanayake - an Attorney-at-Law, who was the Presidential candidate after Gamini Dissanayake’s demise, was the wind behind the wings of Gamini Dissanayake. The two sons Navin - Attorney-at-Law, is presently, the Minister of Public Management Reforms is following the footsteps of his noble father (Appachchi).

The other son is Mayantha and daughter is Varuni. They were brought up with the best Buddhist traditions. Gamini Dissanayake was a devout Buddhist. One of his dreams was to see the completion of Kotmale Mahaweli Maha Seya. Like Great King Dutugemunu, who could not complete Ruwanweli Mahaseya, Gamini Dissanayake too could not live to see the completion of his dream project Kotmale Mahaweli Maha-seya. Shakespeare once said some men play many parts in their lives. Gamini Dissanayake was one of the few to do it all at the sametime. Some outstanding individuals symbolize in their life and work near maximum levels of human capacity. Such genius men are rare. Great Gamini Dissanayake was one of those - a genius, and an exemplary great leader and a gentleman.