Sir Alexander Francis Molamure, (7 February 1888 – 25 January 1951) (commonly known as Sir Francis Molamure or A. F. Molamure) was a Ceylonese politician. He became the first
speaker
Speaker may refer to:
Society and politics
* Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly
* Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture
* A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially:
** I ...
of both the
State Council of Ceylon
The State Council of Ceylon was the unicameral legislature for Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), established in 1931 by the Donoughmore Constitution. The State Council gave universal adult franchise to the people of the colony for the first time. It r ...
and
Parliament of Ceylon
The Parliament of Ceylon was the legislative body of British Ceylon & Dominion of Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) established in 1947 by the Soulbury Constitution, prior to independence on 4 February 1948. Parliament replaced the State Council of Ceylon.
...
. He was a controversial figure due to his departure from the State Council due to a court conviction and for organising the Panamure Elephant Kraal in 1950.
Early life
Born in
Ratnapura
Ratnapura (; ) ("City of Gems" in Sinhala and Tamil) is a major city in Sri Lanka. It is the capital city of Sabaragamuwa Province, as well as the Ratnapura District, and is a traditional centre for the Sri Lankan gem trade. It is located ...
on 2 July 1888, he was educated at
S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia
, motto_translation = Be Thou Forever
, song = Thomian Song
, athletics = Yes
, sports = Yes
, nickname = Thora
, denomination = Anglican
, patron ...
where he played cricket for his school team, captaining the college team at the
Royal–Thomian
The Royal–Thomian (The Battle of the Blues) is an annual cricket match in Sri Lanka played between Royal College, Colombo and S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia since 1879. It is known as ''The Battle of the Blues'' due to the colours of the tw ...
in 1903.
Legal career
He qualified as an
Barrister
A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and ...
and became an
advocate
An advocate is a professional in the field of law. Different countries' legal systems use the term with somewhat differing meanings. The broad equivalent in many English law–based jurisdictions could be a barrister or a solicitor. However, ...
, establishing his practice in the
unofficial bar in
Kegalle
Kegalle ( si, කෑගල්ල; ta, கேகாலை) is a large town in Sabaragamuwa Province of Sri Lanka. It is located on the Colombo–Kandy road, approximately from Colombo and from Kandy. It is the main town in the Kegalle District ...
.
Early political career
Molamure was member of the local board for health and improvement in Kegalle, he contested the
1924 legislative council election and was elected to the
Legislative Council of Ceylon
The Legislative Council of Ceylon was the legislative body of British Ceylon, Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) established in 1833, along with the Executive Council of Ceylon, on the recommendations of the Colebrooke-Cameron Commission. It was the first f ...
from the Kegalle District. In the legislative council he was a member of the committee on higher education that was appointed by the Governor which recommended the formation of the
University of Ceylon
The University of Ceylon was the only university in Sri Lanka (earlier Ceylon) from 1942 until 1972. It had several constituent campuses at various locations around Sri Lanka. The University of Ceylon Act No. 1 of 1972, replaced it with the Univer ...
.
In 1927, he chaired the 9th AGM of the All Ceylon Buddhist Association Congress. In 1931, he was re-elected to the
First State Council from the Dedigama electorate. The State Council was ceremonially opened on 10 July 1931, and Molamure was elected as the speaker three days earlier on 7 July having defeated
Sir Stewart Schneider by 35 to 18 votes.
Maduwanwela estate
Molamure was the nephew of
J. W. Maduwanwela (who was known as Maduwanwela Maha Disawe) who had included him in his
last will
A will or testament is a legal document that expresses a person's (testator) wishes as to how their property ( estate) is to be distributed after their death and as to which person (executor) is to manage the property until its final distributio ...
as executor, indicating that his widower and daughter and Molamure's cousin, Dingiri Appey retain life interest over much of his vast properties and ownership to pass to Molamure on their deaths and held in trust until such time. The trust included the
Maduwanwela Walawwa
Maduwanwela Walawwa is a Walauwa located in Ratnapura District, Sabaragamuwa Province, Sri Lanka. The Walawwa is in the town of Maduwanwela, which lies between Embilipitiya and Suriyakanda, approximately from Colombo.
History
Maduwanwela Wal ...
, 83,000 acres of timber and gem lands and a vast fortune of gems, jewellery and properties. Upon his uncle's death, Molamure and another trustee a nephew of Kalawana Kumarihami, Cyril Dangamuwa William Theodore Ellawala the
Rate Mahatmaya
Rate Mahatmaya was a traditional office and title from the Kandian Kingdom which became part of the British colonial administration within the Kandian and central region of Ceylon.
History
Persons were appointed to the title and office by the Ki ...
of the Nawadun Korale in Ratnapura were able to successfully manipulate the trust left for Dingiri Appey, who was crippled at birth, to their benefit. The wealth from this Maduwanwela trust provided Molamure with the resources to launch an ambitious political career. In 1934, he was found guilty of contempt of court by the district court of Ratnapura for overdrawing funds in the
Imperial Bank of India
The Imperial Bank of India (IBI) was one of the oldest and the largest commercial bank of the Indian subcontinent, and was subsequently transformed into the State Bank of India in 1955. Initially, as per its royal charter, it acted as the cen ...
of the Maduwanwela estate in 1931 while he was the executor, a ruling which was confirmed by the supreme court in February 1935 resulting in 12 month simple prison sentence. This resulted in Molamure losing his post as speaker and his seat in the state council on 10 December 1934 after an absence of three months without leave.
Return to politics
After an absence from politics, during which time he had acquired a number of tea and rubber estates, Molamure had become a prominent member of the
Ceylon National Congress
The Ceylon National Congress ( Sinhala: ලංකා ජාතික කොන්ග්රසය ''Lanka Jathika Kongrasaya'') (CNC) was a Nationalist political party which was formed in Ceylon on 11 December 1919. It was founded after national ...
and a close ally of
D. S. Senanayake
Don Stephen Senanayake ( si, දොන් ස්ටීවන් සේනානායක,; ta, டி. எஸ். சேனநாயக்கா; 21 October 1884 – 22 March 1952) was a Ceylonese statesman. He was the first Prime Mi ...
by the early 1940's. He was elected to the State Council in October 1943 from
Balangoda
Balangoda is a large town in Ratnapura District, Sabaragamuwa Province, Sri Lanka, governed by an urban council located away from Colombo and from Ratnapura on Colombo - Batticaloa Highway(A4). It is one of the largest towns of the Sabaragamuw ...
in a by-election after the resignation of
H. A. Goonesekera
Henry Abeywickrema Goonesekera was a Ceylonese politician, who was a member of the 2nd State Council of Ceylon.
Goonesekera was adopted as child by the Sirimavo_Bandaranaike#Early_life_(1916–1940), Mahawelatenne family and as they had no male ...
over a charge of bribery. He contested the
1947 general election from the
Balangoda electorate representing the
United National Party
The United National Party, often abbreviated as UNP ( si, එක්සත් ජාතික පක්ෂය, translit=Eksath Jāthika Pakshaya, ta, ஐக்கிய தேசியக் கட்சி, translit=Aikkiya Tēciyak Kaṭci), ...
and was elected to the newly formed
Parliament of Ceylon
The Parliament of Ceylon was the legislative body of British Ceylon & Dominion of Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) established in 1947 by the Soulbury Constitution, prior to independence on 4 February 1948. Parliament replaced the State Council of Ceylon.
...
. At the first seating of parliament of the newly independent Ceylon, Molamure's name was proposed as speaker by
C. Sittampalam
Cathiravelu Sittampalam ( ta, கதிரவேலு சிற்றம்பலம்; 13 September 1898 – 3 February 1964) was a Ceylon Tamil civil servant, politician, Member of Parliament and government minister.
Early life and famil ...
and S. U. Edirimanasingham when the opposition proposed
Herbert Sri Nissanka
Herbert Sri Nissanka, QC (also known as ''Nissanka Herbert Mendis'') (7 December 1898 – 26 February 1954) was a Ceylonese lawyer and legislator. Elected to the first post-independence parliament, he was one of the founding members of the Sri ...
. In the following vote Molamure gained 58 and Sri Nissanka gained 41.
Thereby Molamure became the first speaker of parliament and had the government purchase
Mumtaz Mahal, Colombo
The Mumtaz Mahal is the former official residence of the Speaker of the Parliament of Sri Lanka, which now houses the National Defence College, Sri Lanka, located in Kollupitiya, a suburb of Colombo. Built in 1929, it was purchased in 1948 to se ...
as the official residence of the speaker. He was appointed a
Knight Commander
Commander ( it, Commendatore; french: Commandeur; german: Komtur; es, Comendador; pt, Comendador), or Knight Commander, is a title of honor prevalent in chivalric orders and fraternal orders.
The title of Commander occurred in the medieval mili ...
of the
Most Excellent Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations,
and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
in the
1949 Birthday Honours and was known as Sir Francis Molamure.
Elephant Kraal
As his uncle, the Maduwanwela Maha Disawe before him, Molamure continued to organise the
Elephant Kraal in
Panamure Panamure is a village located in the Ratnapura District, Sabaragamuwa Province, Sri Lanka. It is approximately from Colombo and from Ratnapura.
The village is significant because it is the site of the last elephant kraal in Sri Lanka, Panamure ...
, which had been started by the Maduwanwela Maha Disawe in 1896. Molamure was the chief organiser of the last Elephant Kraal at Panamure in 1950, which led to much controversy following the killing of the bull elephant who tried to break the Kraal blockade. The incident led to much public outcry and debates in parliament resulting in the ban on Elephant Kraals and capture of wild elephants.
Family
Molamure married
Adeline Meedeniya in 1912, who became the first female member of the State Council in 1931. She was the daughter of
J. H. Meedeniya
Meedeniye Rajakaruna Senanayaka Panditha Herath Wasala Kupuppu Mudiyanse Ralahamillage Punchi Banda John Henry Meedeniya (''known as J. H. Meedeniya Adigar '') (1867 - 1931) was a Ceylonese legislator and a headmen. He was the Kandyan Sinhalese m ...
Adigar
The Mahâ Adigâr ( si, මහා අධිකාරම්) (also known as Adikārama, Adikār) was a Great Officer in the Amātya Mandalaya, or Sinhalese Council of State, in the Sinhalese Kingdoms of monarchical Sri Lanka. The office was sec ...
, member of the Legislative Council. His brother-in-law was press baron
D. R. Wijewardena
Don Richard Wijewardena ( Sinhala:දොන් රිච්ඩ් විජෙවර්ධන) (23 February 1886 – 13 June 1950) was a Sri Lankan press baron who was involved in the Sri Lankan independence movement. A successful entrepreneur ...
.
[ ]
Their only daughter,
Seetha Molamure, became a member of the
Senate of Ceylon
The Senate was the upper chamber of the parliament of Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) established in 1947 by the Soulbury Commission. The Senate was appointed and indirectly elected rather than directly elected. It was housed in the old Legislative Counci ...
. She married
L. J. Seneviratne a civil servant who became the
Secretary of the Treasury
The United States secretary of the treasury is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury, and is the chief financial officer of the federal government of the United States. The secretary of the treasury serves as the principal a ...
.
RAMBUKPOTHA SENEVIRAJA - Family #3117
/ref>
Death
Molamure suffered a stroke while presiding over parliament at the speaker's seat and was taken to the General Hospital in an unconscious state. He died in hospital a day later on 25 January 1951.
See also
*List of political families in Sri Lanka
This is a partial listing of prominent political families in Sri Lanka.
Abdul Majeed
* A. L. Abdul Majeed (15 November 1933 – 13 November 1987) also known as Mutur Majeed, former Deputy Minister of Information and Broadcasting and Member Par ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Molamure, Alexander
1951 deaths
1888 births
Speakers of the Parliament of Sri Lanka
Members of the 1st State Council of Ceylon
Members of the 1st Parliament of Ceylon
United National Party politicians
Sinhalese politicians
Alumni of S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia
Ceylonese Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire
Ceylonese advocates
Members of the Legislative Council of Ceylon