MERVIN SPEAKS

What is your connection with the drug dealers?
Have got the final warning?
Have you been cursed after the Munneshwaram kovil Incident?

Mervin answers

Yesterday Mawubima newspaper had published an article on Mervin Silva who has become a silent character over the last few weeks.
Mervin Silva, while trying to escape from the questions tries to justify his state of being by saying:
I am trying to hide like King Walagamba, Who once ruled the country
The complete discussion is below:

Those days you used to answer every call or else you make a call to somehow even later. Yet now you have become very silent. You rarely answer a call. Why is this?

No. I make a cry wherever I want to. There is a time even for a hen to cry. I am also like that. I don’t shout these days.
We say that “the cocks comb of the hen that we see every day is white” (we don’t value what we see every day). I will act when I need to act and I will shout when I need to shout.
Those days when there was a protest in Colombo against the Government, your groups used to act against them. But now the protests are carried out without any obstacles like that. Pickets, protests, walks are carried out peacefully without any problem.
Why should we join a minority and make it a majority. People don’t carry boards saying “ours’” or “theirs”. Therefore we reject them and look aside. Jesus told that if we are struck on the left cheek to hold the other cheek also.
There is rumour saying that the Minister of Defense is not very happy about you and that you have been given a “last warning” not to dance too much.
That is a total lie. I am not a person who dances like that. The children of D.A Rajapaksha know that we were born into the families of Sri Lanka Freedom Party. Those children will never be opponents to me and I won’t be an opponent to them.  That is a total lie.

Those days your face was all around Kelaniya. But now your cut outs have been removed. What is happening?

I didn’t remove my face from the cut outs I pasted. Some people put up cut outs without my face. Those are not obstacles to me. I am the Minister and the co-coordinator of the area. Those haven’t changed at all and will never change.

Earlier when you were accused for attacking the Media, no one said a word. When such accusations were there, you accepted them without fear and said that you did them. But now you seem to have taken a back seat.
No. King Walagamba was hiding for 6 years. That too is kind of a strategy. What happened last? King Walagamba gained a great victory. Those are the strategies that come from our heritage. We fight when we the need is there. King Kawanthissa made an army but he did not to fight. Even though, I am silent these days, I will come out when I need to come out.
Some people have accused you having had connection with drug dealers .
I am not a sniffer dog. If there are drug dealers, our government which works towards the well being of the people and the Police will take the necessary actions towards it. When I make friendships with people I don’t ask whether they are drug dealers or not and whether they have sold others’ properties etc.. My doors are open to anyone who wants to talk to me and to get to know me. No one can stop my friendships. As a Minister who won the votes of the people no one can put rules to me. If I get to know a person is a drug dealer, I would tell the police. I still have such a back bone.
Your name was connected with the underworld.

It is said that there are hearty people in the underworld. During the elections, can I say that I don’t want the votes of the underworld? 

I don’t know where this underworld is. If you know please show it on your paper. On the other hand, I don’t have contacts with the bandits and rapists. If people like me can I stop them talking to me? Wherever I go I am surrounded by people. People like me. That is not one of my faults. That is the interest of the people. Even if not, coming from Beliatta I could go to the Parliament by taking one and half lahks of votes from Gamapaha district where the most intelligent people in the country live. My umbilical cord was cut in Beliatta.

Actually what happened in Keleniya? Your own followers are going against you. They accuse you saying that you have taken bribes.

I don’t want to talk about it. God will look after that. Even Jesus was betrayed, people hooted for Mohammed in Macca, stones were tumbled towards Lord Buddha, a spy came to the village in disguise of a merchant when Keppetipola was sick and he gave the tip to capture Keppetipola. Likewise there were Judas and Devadaththas in the history as well. Therefore don’t let important people talk about unimportant things like that. Unimportant things go on for an auction. If we start talking those become a disciplinary issue in the party. Till that actions are taken about it , I will keep quiet.

You were brought before the committee which takes actions against disciplinary problems. Weren’t you?

True, I was brought before the committee but to examine the complaint I made. I was given 9 files full of complaints. Sri Lankan Freedom party is a such disciplined party. I’ll tell u one example. I am a person who stood against injustice. I have faith in our party who will take necessary steps towards the compliant I made. During Sirmawo Bandaranaike’s time I was chased away from the party by Anura Banadaranaike saying that I worked against her. Yet a court order was given to take me back to the party. But they didn’t abide by that order and they did not take me back to the party. Every party should have its own disciplines. Otherwise the party will be eroded.

Has your followers in Kelaniya  Pradeshiya Sabha  have made a complaint against you?

I don’t know. If I am summoned for it, I will go. I have been always disciplined. I am ready for anything. Once you jump to the river, if the water comes above my nose, I know how to swim and save my life. I won’t jump into water if I can’t swim. I am ready for anything.
These people have made a complaints to the Police Commissioner saying that you take bribes even the Police had confirmed that they have received a lot of complaints and the Media published that you have taken bribes over Rs 6 million.
That is the country’s super democracy. There is no fault in that. They have a right to complaint. I have to face it. Law is equal for everyone.

Did the police even take verbal statements from you?

They will take when they have to. I won’t be hesitant.
Who is behind this conspiracy?
I don’t have super powers to predict. I don’t want to find about it either. Lord Buddha preached to Mugalan not to find about the end of the world. As a Buddhist I don’t want to find out about it.
Some people say that you were cursed because you took away the goats and hens without letting them to make the needed sacrifice. And you are going through trouble because of the curse.?
I am pointing my finger and telling that I will never let anyone to kill animals for sacrifices until I live. If Kali Amma hates me I am ready to accept that hatred from her. ‘Mawubima’ can tell me whenever there is a sacrifice. I will go there. There aren’t any gods who need blood, only devils need blood and I don’t have any connections with the devils. I have connections only with the gods.

We heard that two of your co-crdinators were kidnapped by a white van. Later on you said that you did not have such co-ordinators. What did really happen?

I saw it on the newspaper. I don’t know whether it was a white or red or black van. Two people whom I knew were taken but they were released. Some people hide and show that they have been kidnapped. Some couples who elope too say that they were kidnapped. When a person is indebted to all, he tries to hide from the people. I believe that this is an international conspiracy against the government. The government does not want to kidnap anyone. The police and the law are there to punish the people who do wrong by taking them before the courts. The law of this country is impartial.

The group which made conspiracies against you told in a media conference that they are backed by the President, Basil Rajapaksa and the Minister of Defense. Do you believe in that?

I don’t believe it at all. I knew D.A Rajapaksa’s children from my childhood. I know them very well. Their parents and my parents were well known to each other. If they are against me I will not live in this world. These are conspiracies. People who are craving for money are doing these things.

Is it true that you will be dispelled from your position and that your position will be given to a Rajapaksa? 

Rajapaksa’s are not that type of people who will take someone else’s position by throwing them out. President came to this position because he protected people’s interests, his interests and democracy of the country. I don’t think that there is family like that in the whole country.  All of them are very clever. Look at the Colombo city, go and see the changes in every city. That is after Basil took over the R.D.A and look at the development and how he contributes it towards the economy. Whatever that is, now we have the freedom to go where ever we like to go. Those days we had to worry about bombs and the terrorism. I was given Keleniya by our President. When Sripathi Sooriyarachchi worked against us, there was no one to take over Kelaniya. I had only the people and some of my friends. I took over Kelaniya at a very difficult state. Then the whole country started to talk about the development, culture and the changes made in Kelaniya.

Is Mervin Silva a thug? Or else is he a thug because he has political power to be a thug?

When I was working for the UNP I have been in jail as the co-coordinator for Tissamaharama. I organized pickets and when the meetings which were banned I held a meeting at Tissamaharama. My sister, brother and the brother- in –law were killed. I drove the vehicle with those three dead bodies. Army who saw is there to give evidence. I am not a thug. I am some one who stands against injustice. Therefore, I don’t need power of the government to talk the truth. I faced those during the UNP time as well. Ask the retired D.I.G Gunathilaka. The Ppresident, Anura Bandaranayaike and us went on pickets those days. Our walk started from Kataragama. As I remember that D.I.G was the A.S.P during that time. He stopped us. I removed my shirt and told him to shoot me if he can. Chinese circus is not shown everywhere, when I want to show it I will show it.

How is your horoscope these days?

I didn’t read my horoscope recently. I attend to religious work every day. I have painted gold in 5 stupas including Mirisawetiya, Ruwanweliseya, Thuparamaya, Lankaramaya and Kelaniviharaya. I have also painted them in white. I painted Somawathiya in gold 15 days ago.
There is another thing. That is only for your newspaper. Make this popular. I saw in a paper that the statue of Keppetipola was thrown aside. That it was not painted and there is no bulb near it. I am planning to paint it and give it a value. When we are celebrating the 64th anniversary of Independence, I need to say that I am doing work such as that.

If this is a tough time for you, who is there for your help?

No, I don’t feel like that. That has never happened to me. The support I always had been from the Rajapaksa family. That strength and that core is always there. I have that till I attain Nibbana. Our President is not a person who will forget his beginning. He won’t forget who had helped him. He was there with the ears and not with the body. We are his ears.

You told that Mervin Silva is a man who is “not in debt to any one and not scared of anything”. Is it still the same?

Yes, it is the same. No one can break my backbone till the day I die. These are habits we bring from our past lives.
Don’t ever underestimate me as a media person. You all must be in debt and facing a lot of problems. Yet, you are very brave. You all should use your pens without fearing anyone. Electronic media too is the same. Print Media is the same. Why is that? Those are the habits coming from your past lives. You can’t be a Media person without been a bright person.

Are you disappointed about politics?

I have no disappointments about life. I was never disappointed and will never be. At the same time I will never change to robes having been disappointed about life.