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| Sunday, 27 November 2005 |
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Features |  |
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President's supporters in estate sector unite by S. S. Warani Although the Presidential poll ended with victory for Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapakse, the storm in the tea cup is not over. The main political party cum trade union, the Ceylon Worker's Congress is faced with internal squabbles. As the CWC Leader and Parliamentarian Arumugan Thondaman left for India immediately after the poll, others in the hierarchy, point their fingers at a Vice-President, a self-proclaimed Kingmaker, who was behind the move to withdraw support for the Government and instead to the Opposition Leader at the Presidential poll. According to a CWC Parliamentarian, the decision to support the Opposition Leader was forced on the leadership by this particular vice President (there are many vice-presidents at the CWC) assuring that he would harness a bulk 500,000 votes from the North. With the defeat of the UNP leader, the CWC seems to be interested in playing the same old game of supporting any government to get ministerial portfolios. Former Minister Muthu Sivalingam said that the CWC would consider joining the government, "in the interest of the community", if invited. In the up-country, Nuwara-Eliya District was considered crucial for the victory of Ranil Wickremesinghe, as more than 50 percent of the district's population belonged to Tamils of Indian origin. It has also well organised the working class in the country. It is the home district of stalwarts like Parliamentarians Arumugan Thondaman, Up-Country People's Front Leader P. Chandraskeran and UNP leader Navin Dissanayake who had served as ministers and deputy ministers, and thus the UNP victory had been already assured in Nuwera-Eliya. However, UPFA presidential candidate had to rely on Tamil votes from former Parliamentarian S.Sathasivam's Ceylon Worker's Alliance, one dissident Provincial Councillor of the CWC P. Govindaraj , and two dissident Provincial Councillors from the Upcountry People's Front S. Arulsamy and P. Dhihambaram who have still not formed their mass-based organisations. There are 231, 235 Tamil voters out of the total 454,625 voters in the Nuwara-Eliya district and only 361,285 polled and total valid votes were 355,875. 93,340 voters did not use their franchise. However, a picture had been painted to the public as if there were no Sinhala voters in the district. UNP was able to score 250,428 votes while the UPFA won 99,550. At the parliamentary elections held last year, UNP and CWC jointly secured 176,971 votes, Chandraskeran alone won 49,728, the UPFA 82,945 and JHU 4,154. UNP, CWC and UPF together secured 226,649 votes at that election. However, at the Presidential Poll, these three hands joined together were able to strengthen their vote bank only by 23,729 votes. While, the UPFA with the support of JVP and JHU and the dissidents was able to increase its votes by 16,605. Even in the Nuwara Eliya-Maskeliya electorate, which is considered the fortress of Arumugan Thondaman, Chandsrasekeran, and the National Union of Worker's, the UNP was able to win only 22,890 more votes than the UPFA. With the appointment of Parliamentarian C.B. Ratnayake as the Minister for Estate Infrastructure and Livestock, the door has been closed for the CWC, at present. |
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