Maithri says Mahinda won’t be UPFA’s PM candidate
President Maithripala Sirisena will never field former President Mahinda Rajapakasa as the UPFA’s prime ministerial candidate, according to highly placed SLFP sources.
In response to calls from some SLFP stalwarts at a meeting, at the Sri Lanka Foundation Institute, presided by President Sirisena, for naming Rajapaksa the UPFA prime ministerial candidate, a six-member committee was appointed on Tuesday to study the issue.
The members of the committee were MPs Susil Premajanayatha, Kumara Welgama, John Seneviratne, Anura Priyadashana Yapa, Dilan Perera and T. B. Ekanayake.
The committee had its first meeting on Tuesday night itself at former Minister John Seneviratne’s Colombo residence. While the committee members were discussing the matter a message was conveyed to them that President Sirisena was no amenable to the proposal to field Rajapaksa as PM candidate.
President Sirisena had intimated his decision to Rajapaksa though a family member of the latter, SLFP sources said. Rajapaksa had informed Sirisena through the same person that he would field a separate team at the next parliamentary election if he was not allowed to contest on the UPFA ticket as the coalitions PM candidate.
Sources close to President Sirisena told The Island last night that the appointment of the committee had irked those who had thrown their weight behind him in the presidential race. Some of them had attended a hurriedly summoned meeting in a Colombo suburb to discuss the issue and decided to oppose the moves to bring back Rajapaksa, sources said, adding that the President was under tremendous pressure not to accommodate Rajapaksa.
President Sirisena has informed former President Rajapaksa that he has no objections to the latter playing a key role in the UPFA campaign at the next general election without contesting.
Former Minister Welgama, at Tuesday’s meeting attended by the SLFP MPs, Provincial Councillors and Local Government members, urged the two leaders to iron out their differences so that the UPFA could win the next election with ease.
A senior SLFP MP said the committee was a nonstarter.
(Source: The Island)
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He has to fulfill his promises. One of the main is to purify the political system and create a new society which we all can be proud of. If Mahinda is made PM, the current degradation will continue until we beat African tribal societies.
Maithripala Sirisena is a Traitor.
Mr Sirisena is the smiling assassin. Had dinner with his boss and the next morning stabbed him in the back Judas betrayed Jesus Christ for 20 pieces of silver. How much did MS get from his Western Masters for betraying MR.
The bitter and the stark naked truth is out. Some of the SLFP stalwarts under illusion thought something good is going to fall from behind the two legs of the legendary goat. The goat has stood on his hind legs and told them in plain language who he is and what to expect.
Who will have the last laugh ?
Puchaaa
The best way forward for National Hero, Mahinda Rajapaksa is to come forward on an independent platform with a minority leader such as Pillayan or Karuna.
The team must promise a constitutional amendment if elected, which will elevate the running mate (Pillayan or Karuna) as the country’s Vice President with executive powers over all devolved entities (Provincial Councils).
This way, the Mahinda independent camp will gain significant majority vote in the North and East and when that is compounded with Mahinda’s 5.8 m followers who voted for him in Jan 2015, Mahinda, as Prime Minister, will be the uncrowned king.