Dilith Jayaweera
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Dilith Susantha Jayaweera (born 18 September 1967) is a Sri Lankan businessman, entrepreneur,
media mogul A media proprietor, also called a media executive, media mogul, media tycoon, or press baron is an entrepreneur who controls any means of public or commercial mass media, through the personal ownership or holding of a dominant position within a ...
,
lawyer A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...
and politician. He is the current Chairman of George Steuart Group of Companies, and the founder and CEO of
TV Derana TV Derana a Sri Lankan private entertainment terrestrial television channel broadcasting in Sri Lanka. Launched on 11 October 2005, it is one of the most popular television networks in the country. Its main transmission tower is on the Kikili ...
. He entered politics in September 2023 and is the founder and leader of the Mawbima Janatha Pakshaya. In 2011, he was named by the LMD as one of the top 10 Business People of the Year. In 2020, Jayaweera was among 100 corporate leaders named by the LMD on its A-list of businesspeople in Sri Lanka.


Education

Jayaweera received his primary and secondary education at St. Aloysius' College, Galle, and later joined the Faculty of Law at the
University of Colombo The University of Colombo (informally Colombo University or UoC) is a Public University, public research university located primarily in Colombo, Sri Lanka. It is the oldest institution of modern higher education in Sri Lanka. Specialised in t ...
, and subsequently
Sri Lanka Law College Sri Lanka Law College (abbreviated as SLLC), formerly known as Ceylon Law College, is a law college, and the only legal institution where one can enrol as an Attorney-at-Law in Sri Lanka. It was established in 1874, under the then Council of Le ...
, where he qualified as an
Attorney-At-Law Attorney at law or attorney-at-law, usually abbreviated in everyday speech to attorney, is the preferred term for a practising lawyer in certain jurisdictions, including South Africa (for certain lawyers), Sri Lanka, the Philippines, and the Unit ...
. He also holds an MBA from the
University of Wales The University of Wales () is a confederal university based in Cardiff, Wales. Founded by royal charter in 1893 as a federal university with three constituent colleges – Aberystwyth, Bangor and Cardiff – the university was the first universit ...
.


Entrepreneurial career

A lawyer by profession, Jayaweera set up Triad Advertising (Pvt.) Limited in 1993, in partnership with Varuni Amunugama, whom he had met at the Faculty of Law,
University of Colombo The University of Colombo (informally Colombo University or UoC) is a Public University, public research university located primarily in Colombo, Sri Lanka. It is the oldest institution of modern higher education in Sri Lanka. Specialised in t ...
. Jayaweera also funded the ‘Api Wenuwen Api’ Housing Project, a campaign created on behalf of the
Sri Lankan Armed Forces The Sri Lanka Armed Forces is the overall unified military of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka encompassing the Sri Lanka Army, the Sri Lanka Navy, and the Sri Lanka Air Force; they are governed by the Ministry of Defence (Sri Lank ...
to raise the profile of the Sri Lankan army, navy and air forces during the latter stages of the Sri Lankan civil war against the
LTTE The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE; , ; also known as the Tamil Tigers) was a Tamil militant organization, that was based in the northern and eastern Sri Lanka. The LTTE fought to create an independent Tamil state called Tamil Eelam ...
. In the post-war Sri Lankan economy, Jayaweera rose to prominence as an aggressive investor – his investment arm Divasa Equity is a majority shareholder in public listed companies such as Citrus Leisure PLC and Colombo Land & Development Company PLC. In October 2011, Jayaweera took over the 176-year-old George Steuart Group, Sri Lanka's oldest mercantile establishment. Jayaweera has held board positions on the Boards of several companies including Citrus Leisure PLC, Colombo Land PLC, and Triad (Pvt.) Ltd, and is the Chairman of the George Steuart Group of Companies. Jayaweera's media investments includes two national television channels ( Derana Macro Entertainment (Television)), one national radio channel ( Derana Macro Entertainment (Radio)) and three national newspapers ( Liberty Publishers). Jayaweera has also entered industries such as travel and leisure, pharmaceuticals, property and manufacturing via the George Steuart Group of Companies.


Political career

Dilith Jayaweera played a significant role in
Gotabaya Rajapaksa Nandasena Gotabaya Rajapaksa, (; ; born 20 June 1949) was a Sri Lankan politician and military officer who served as the eighth President of Sri Lanka from 18 November 2019 until his Resignation of Gotabaya Rajapaksa, resignation on 14 July 202 ...
's 2019 presidential campaign, through multifaceted support and strategic media influence. Jayaweera orchestrated a media strategy that significantly amplified the Rajapaksa campaign's visibility islandwide. Dilith Jayaweera formally entered Sri Lankan politics in 2023 when he founded and was appointed as the leader of the Mawbima Janatha Pakshaya (MJP), succeeding
Hemakumara Nanayakkara Hemakumara Wickramathilaka Nanayakkara (born 12 July 1953) is a Sri Lankan politician who served as the 7th Governor of the Western Province of Sri Lanka, in office from April to December 2018. He has also been a Governor of the Southern Provin ...
, who was appointed to an advisory position as Senior Leader of the party. Prior the announcement, Jayaweera resigned from several of his company board positions.


2024 presidential election

On 4 August 2024, Jayaweera was announced as the presidential candidate of the Sarvajana Balaya in the
2024 Sri Lankan presidential election Presidential elections were held in Sri Lanka on 21 September 2024. Incumbent President of Sri Lanka, president Ranil Wickremesinghe ran for re-election as an Independent politician, independent candidate, making him the first sitting president ...
. The Sarvajana Balaya was a political alliance led by Jayaweera consisting of the Jathika Nidahas Peramuna, Pivithuru Hela Urumaya, Mawbima Janatha Pakshaya, the
Democratic Left Front The Democratic Left Front was formed as a non-sectarian and non-authoritarian anti-capitalist front in South Africa. It was formed from the ''Conference for a Democratic Left'' launched in 2008, at an event held in Johannesburg in January 2011. It ...
, the
Communist Party of Sri Lanka The Communist Party of Sri Lanka (; ) is a communist party in Sri Lanka. In the 2004 Sri Lankan parliamentary election, 2004 legislative election, the party was part of the United People's Freedom Alliance that won 45.6% of the popular vote and ...
and the Independent MP’s Forum. Jayaweera submitted nominations from the Communist Party to contest under the "star" symbol. Jayaweera finished in sixth place in the first round, winning 122,396 votes. Jayaweera contested for 2024 parliamentary election from
Gampaha district Gampaha District ( ''gampaha distrikkaya'', ''Kampakai Māvaṭṭam'') is one of the 25 Districts of Sri Lanka, districts of Sri Lanka, the second level administrative division of the country. It is the second most populous district of Sri Lank ...
, but failed to secure a seat. However, he entered the parliament through the only
national list The National List (, ''Reshima Mamlakhtit''), sometimes translated as the State List, was a political party in Israel. Despite being founded by David Ben-Gurion, one of the fathers of the Israeli left, the party is one of the ancestors of the mo ...
seat his party gained at the election.


Controversies

In 2011, District Judge of Colombo issued an enjoining order against Shan Wickremesinghe, TNL TV chairman and brother of former president
Ranil Wickremesinghe Ranil Wickremesinghe (; ; born 24 March 1949) is a Sri Lankan politician who served as the ninth president of Sri Lanka from 2022 to 2024. He has also served as Prime Minister of Sri Lanka from 1993–1994, 2001–2004, 2015–2018, 2018-2019 a ...
, and one of his directors preventing them from defaming Dilith Jayaweera on a local radio channel Isira Radio. The order was given consequent to action filed by Dilith Jayaweera against Shan Wickremesinghe and his co-host for defamatory comments made on a radio show. Jayaweera also sent the BBC Sinhala service a letter of demand for defamation for carrying a story on the subject. In 2015, one notable incident was his investigation for stock market manipulation through pump-and-dump schemes by the Financial Crimes Investigation Division (FCID). But nothing has been proven yet. During the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
, there was significant controversy and criticism regarding the profits made from COVID-19 test kits distributed by George Steuart Health, Jayaweera's company.
Critics A critic is a person who communicates an assessment and an opinion of various forms of creative works such as art, literature, music, cinema, theater, fashion, architecture, and food. Critics may also take as their subject social or governme ...
, including members of the Buddhist clergy, claimed that the company made excessive profits by selling the test kits at high prices to private hospitals. Jayaweera responded to the accusations by going to courts to prevent coverage of the incident by
News First NewsFirst or News 1st is a Sri Lankan news organization owned by thCapital Maharaja Organization Ltd News 1st primarily broadcasts news, live on three TV channels ( Sirasa TV, Shakthi TV, TV 1, five radio channels (Sirasa FM, Yes FM, Shakthi FM, ...
, claiming to be a victim of
defamation Defamation is a communication that injures a third party's reputation and causes a legally redressable injury. The precise legal definition of defamation varies from country to country. It is not necessarily restricted to making assertions ...
.


Personal life

Dilith Jayaweera is married to Nelum, his contemporary at the University of Colombo. Dilith, along with his three brothers Lalith, Gayan and Upul, grew up in
Galle Galle (, ; , ) (formerly ) is a major city on the southwestern tip of Sri Lanka, south of Colombo. Galle is the provincial capital and largest city of Southern Province, Sri Lanka and is the capital of Galle District. Galle was known as ''Gi ...
, on the southern coast of Sri Lanka. His father was an Additional Registrar of Lands and his mother was a school principal. Dilith Jayaweera is an acquaintance of Dinesh Palipana, a Sri Lankan-Australian doctor and
Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...
's first
quadriplegic Tetraplegia, also known as quadriplegia, is defined as the dysfunction or loss of Motor control, motor and/or Sense, sensory function in the Cervical vertebrae, cervical area of the spinal cord. A loss of motor function can present as either weak ...
medical intern. Palipana has credited Jayaweera with helping him progress through the accident that left him a quadriplegic.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jayaweera, Dilith Living people 1967 births 21st-century businesspeople Alumni of St. Aloysius' College, Galle Alumni of the University of Colombo Candidates in the 2024 Sri Lankan presidential election Mass media company founders Mass media owners Members of the 17th Parliament of Sri Lanka People from Galle Sinhalese people Sri Lankan businesspeople Sri Lankan lawyers