Lukewarm Opposition campaign admission of defeat - PM

by Wijitha NAKKAWITA

With less than a month remaining for the two Provincial Council elections, Central and North Central Provinces remaining the lukewarm Opposition election campaign shows both the UNP and the JVP had already admitted defeat, Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickramanayake said recently.

However the election rallies brought out some very interesting statements from the Government and the Opposition speakers. Leader of the House and Minister of Healthcare and Nutrition Nimal Siripala de Silva addressing a UPFA election rally at Galgamuwa said the governing party had fielded war heroes in each district in recognition and appreciation of the invaluable sacrifices of the armed forces in defeating the LTTE.

At a meeting in Laggala in the Southern Province Chief Minister Shan Wijelal Silva remarked that the castles built in the air the UNP's chief ministerial candidate built will be shattered when the UNP was defeated at the forthcoming provincial election. He was referring to a remarks made by S.B. that he wished to be a dictator and that he was the monarch of the Central Province.

UNP's controversial Deputy Leader Karu Jayasuriya who crossed over to the Government with the 17 member rebel group and returned to the UNP after the vote on the Budget 2009 was reported saying though the war was almost won the people were awaiting and watching how the Government would handle economic development. As is well-known Jayasuriya who had come up in the UNP more recently than other UNP officials had only two brief stints as Ministers of the Ranil Wickremesinghe and UPFA Governments.

Shamal Prasanna Senarat the little known UNP chief ministerial candidate of the North Western Province said at a recent election rally when the UNP forms the provincial administration he would not allow any UNP councillor to misappropriate public funds.

It appeared that the UNP was spending lot of funds on the election campaign. Elections could not be won by distributing money among voters as the voters were intelligent enough to understand that the UNP could not achieve what the Government had achieved especially winning the war while also continuing mega development projects as well as rural infrastructure development hand in hand.

The JVP leader Somawansa Amarasinghe addressing a propaganda rally at Rikillagaskada in the Central Province said the Government was afraid of journalists who used their pens to criticise the Government. But the chairman of the NFF, Nandana Gunatilaka said it was the JVP that suppressed dissent and the freedom of expression like the assault with rods that had wire nails fixed on them to a person in Kandy who was assaulted by JVP goons for having entertained NFF leader Wimal Weerawansa and his party at tea when they visited Kandy just after forming the new political party.