Dingiri Banda Wijetunga
Ranil Wickremasinghe | |
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| Personal details | |
| Born | 15 February 1916 Udunuwara, British Ceylon (now in Sri Lanka) |
| Died | 21 September 2008 (aged 92) Kandy, Sri Lanka |
| Political party | United National Party |
| Spouse | Wimalawathi Kumarihami |
| Children | Chithrangani Wijetunga |
Sri Lankabhimanya Dingiri Banda Wijetunga (Sinhala: ඩිංගිරි බණ්ඩා විජේතුංග; Tamil: டிங்கிரி பண்ட விஜேதுங்க; 15 February 1916 – 21 September 2008) was the fourth President of Sri Lanka from 7 May 1993 to 12 November 1994, Prime Minister of Sri Lanka from 3 March 1989 to 7 May 1993 and the Governor of North Western province, Sri Lanka from 1988 to 1989. He was awarded Sri Lanka's highest award to a civilian Sri Lankabhimanya in 1993 by President Ranasinghe Premadasa.
Early life and education
Wijetunga was born on 15 February 1916 to Wijethunga Mudiyanselage Delgahapitiya Arachchila and his wife Manamperi Mudiyanselage Palingumanike Manamperi, as the eldest in a middle-class
Early career
After completing his schooling, he joined
Political career
He was closely associated with veteran politicians like
He joined the
He lost the Udunuwara electorate in
He served briefly as the Governor of North Western province in 1988 before returning to Parliamentary politics a few months later. In the last general election he contested he secured the largest number of preferential votes in the Kandy District.
Prime minister
Wijetunga was surprisingly appointed Prime Minister in 1989 by President Ranasinghe Premadasa. He also held the Ministries of Finance and Labour and Vocational Training in addition to being the State Minister of Defence in the Premadasa administration.
Wijetunga was elected unanimously by Parliament to complete the remainder of Premadasa's term and was sworn in as the third executive President on 7 May 1993.
Presidency
Wijetunga appointed Ranil Wickramasinghe as his prime minister a close relative of former president Jayawardana.
His rule coincided with the rise of
He did not believe that peace could be achieved by negotiating with the LTTE. The Eastern Province was liberated from the LTTE during his tenure except for Thoppigala.
After a decisive defeat in the Southern Provincial Council Election in 1994, he dissolved parliament prematurely in June of that year.
However his party was defeated in the 1994 general election and Wijetunga appointed Kumaratunga as Prime Minister. Even though under the constitution, Wijetunga was bestowed with wide powers, he chose not to exercise much authority, letting the Prime Minister manage the affairs of the country.
He decided not to contest the presidential election and he appointed Lucky Jayawardena as the organizer for his electorate Udunuwara. He relinquished office in November 1994 after Kumaratunga was elected President by an unprecedented majority. His political career was succeeded by Jayawardena (MP).
Death
D.B. Wijetunga died after a prolonged illness around 9.30 am on 21 September 2008 at Kandy General Hospital.[1] He was 92.[2]
Further reading
- P. Jayaram (31 July 1994). "Sri Lankan President Wijetunga's decision to hold snap poll catches parties off guard". India Today.
References
External links
- Dingiri Banda Wijetunga. India Today Group.
- Dingiri Banda Wijetunga – the journey to greatness by M.B. Dassanayake
- Sri Lankan Daily News Editorial on Sep 22, 2008
- A rare politician with exemplary qualities
- A president and gentleman
- President D.B. Wijetunga – An end of an era
- President D. B. Wijetunga The final journey
- Website of the Parliament of Sri Lanka
- Presidents of Sri Lanka
- Rivira Katu Satahana in Sinhala
- Biography Sri Lankan Daily News on the 23 of september
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