Mangala: From five-star cuisine to Buth packet farewell at FO canteen
Hopping from one world capital to another when he was Foreign Minister of the ruling coalition, Mangala Samaraweera has savoured the sumptuous delicacies crafted by the world’s renowned Michelin chefs with multi stars and those in Cordon Bleu aprons.
That is when he brushed shoulders with his then counterparts, world dignitaries and even Heads of State when he accompanied President Maithripala Sirisena on foreign visits.
That glory of imbibing in the globally best of food and drink, at least officially, is now over for Mr. Samaraweera, easily a handful among Sri Lanka’s resilient and courageous politicians.
Just after being sworn in as Minister of Finance and Mass Media at the Presidential Secretariat last Monday morning, he drove straight to the Foreign Ministry to say his farewells. There he sat with Deputy Foreign Minister Harsha de Silva, Foreign Secretary Esala Weerakoon and other top officials. “It is my destiny. I have to give up foreign affairs abruptly for the second time,” he declared in an emotion charged voice.
This time he had to give up office after serving almost two and half years. The first occasion was when he became the Foreign Affairs Minister of the Mahinda Rajapaksa administration in 2005. In January 2007, Rajapaksa dropped him from that office leaving him as Minister of Ports and Aviation. He was sacked from that position in February 2007 together with ministerial colleague the late Anura Bandaranaike and close ally Sripathi Sooriyaratchchi. Just ahead of the January 2015 presidential election, Rajapaksa tried to woo Mr Samaraweera back, but failed.
When the sweet and sorrow moments at the satin wood panelled Minister’s office, which is steeped in history ended, Mr Samaraweera invited those present to join him for a farewell lunch. The venue? No, it was not a star class hotel but the Canteen at the Foreign Ministry, patronised mostly by the minor staff.
Accompanying him were Deputy Minister de Silva, Foreign Secretary Weerakoon, Additional Secretaries and Directors General of different divisions in the Ministry. There was no menu card nor a butler or an usher to greet them.
They queued up to make a choice from “Buth packets” (or packets of rice and curry) that lay stacked. There was an option -- either Chicken or Fish. The guests obtained their preferred pack, sat around tables and dug into a meal of Rice, Dhal, Brinjal Pahi and Pol Sambol.
Mr. Samaraweera, the connoisseur of choice international cuisine, is equally familiar with “Buth Packets.” Weeks ago, en route to the Foreign Ministry after a meeting at Temple Trees, he urged a member of his security detail to stop and hurriedly bring him one from a small roadside outlet. He ate it in a hurry from his desk. The Swiss Ambassador was calling on him followed by the German Ambassador.
It was, however, a different story on Monday night when well-wishers poured into his Stanmore Crescent official residence, safely wedged between the homes of Air Force Commander (Air Marshal Kapila Jayampathy) and Chief of Defence Staff (Air Marshal Kolitha Gunathilake). The food, costing Rs. 50,000, came from ‘Quick Thai’, a takeout near the Sinhalese Sports Club at Maitland Crescent in Colombo’s Cinnamon Gardens.
On Thursday, Mr. Samaraweera’s successor Ravi Karunanayake took over office at a brief ceremony at the Foreign Ministry. A few ministers, MPs, members of the clergy and well-wishers were entertained to kiribath (milk rice).
Soon after the outgoing Minister Samaraweera planted a farewell kiss on the cheeks of Mela Karunanayake, wife of the incoming Minister Ravi Karunanayake. There were cries from some who asked “What about Ravi?” So, Mangala Samaraweera gave him a kiss too.