Harideshaya | RIGHT OF REPLY
A shocking truth is finally coming to light. The appointment of Suranjith Wewita as the new Tourism Chairman is not what it seems. The media has been feeding the public a different story. They want everyone to believe that former minister Malik Samarawickrama handpicked Wewita.
The real mastermind is a different Malik. This other Malik has been chasing control of Sri Lanka Tourism for decades. He comes from a family that puts on a show of moral superiority. That show is a complete sham. His family business is in deep crisis.
Now he wants to take over the tourism industry. He wants to use it as a life raft for his crumbling empire. He cannot do it openly. So he is using Suranjith Wewita as a proxy. Wewita is just a front.
The real power belongs to this desperate Malik.
The Anura Kumara Dissanayake government is allowing this dangerous game. Many of the government’s bad decisions have been blamed on Samarawickrama. He has become an easy scapegoat. Samarawickrama is a veteran politician who has worked with everyone from Chandrika to Ranil to Sajith to Anura. He is not the man behind this move. It is deeply unfair to smear his name.
All stakeholders in the tourism sector must feel deep fear. A failed businessman is about to take charge of the nation’s most vital industry through a hidden proxy. His own family business is a disaster. What will he do to Sri Lanka Tourism? He will plunder it.
He will use it to patch up his personal losses. The entire industry will suffer. Jobs will be lost. Reputation will be destroyed.
The media must stop chasing the wrong Malik. The real Malik is hiding in plain sight. He has been eyeing this prize for too long. His motives are selfish and desperate. This is not a game. The tourism industry is the lifeblood of the economy. It cannot be handed over to a struggling bankrupt family through a puppet chairman. The nation demands the full truth. The time for cover-ups is over.
The people have a right to know before it is too late.
Stakeholders must raise their voices now. They must force the government to reveal the identity of this other Malik.
Only then can Sri Lanka be saved from this hostile takeover.