Masses will rally round Govt at LG polls

The last phase of the Local Government (LG) elections will be held on October 8. This is the third of the LG elections, covering 23 LG bodies, including the prestigious Colombo Municipal Council (CMC).

Since President Mahinda Rajapaksa first assumed office as the Head of State on November 18, 2005, he ensured that all elections were held on or before the due dates, thus demonstrating his unflinching faith in democracy and the people's power.

Unlike the United National Party (UNP) Governments, which postponed elections at the drop of a hat through the controversial referendum President Rajapaksa and the United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) Government have unfailingly held elections as and when they were due. In point of fact, President Rajapaksa conducted the last Presidential election in 2011, two years ahead of schedule and the general election an year earlier.

This was chiefly because President Rajapaksa always reposed implicit faith in democracy, in keeping with the wishes of the masses. Be it the Presidential election, Parliamentary general election, Provincial Councils or LG elections, the UPFA invariably increased its vote base over the past six years.

There was a time when the then UNP regime, led by President J.R. Jayewardene, proposed to fold the election map during the gloomy 1977-1994 era and people began to lose faith in democracy. This stemmed from the fact that there had been large-scale election rigging even at the few elections conducted.

With the present Government holding all elections at the appropriate time, thereby respecting the rights of the people, the crisis-hit Opposition, which is still groping in the dark to find a winning formula, is pointing an accusing finger at the Government for holding too many elections.

There has been severe erosion in the vote base of the UNP and the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP). The two parties grappling for survival seem to abhor elections as they are unable to come to terms with defeat. The simmering UNP leadership crisis has pushed its members from pillar to post, not knowing how to act as a responsible Opposition. Never in the UNP's chequered history have people witnessed such an ignominious battle for party leadership. Evidently, there had been a few cold wars for the UNP leadership but those had been merely confined to party seniors. The UNP seniors at the time were wary not to wash dirty linen in public.

But lo and behold, a gang of immature and unscrupulous UNP rebel Parliamentarians are now working openly to ruin the party. The interminable leadership battle in the UNP would relegate the party towards a deeper political abyss.

On the other hand, the JVP is bereft of its attractions and its vote base crumbled after Minister Wimal Weerawansa defected from the party. The JVP secured a comfortable 41 seats at the 2004 general election purely due to Weerawansa's immense popularity when the JVP contested under the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP)-led People's Alliance (PA). However, with Weerawansa's exit with 10 party seniors, the JVP lost even its meagre three percent vote base they had enjoyed earlier. Hence, the UNP and the JVP have little or no choice, but to criticise and blame the Government at every turn for holding too many elections.

Nevertheless, the Government would pursue its democratic path by bowing to the wishes of the people. The LG elections in the North and the East have already been conducted and no sooner the resettlement and infrastructure development process in the North are fully completed, the Northern Provincial Council elections too would be duly held.

By conducting regular elections, any government would be in a better position to read the pulse of the people and rectify whatever shortcomings. This would no doubt pave the way for a people-friendly government that would always give a patient hearing to the grievances of the masses. In this context, it is patently clear that only those who are unable to face the masses and have been pushed to the political dustbin have a morbid fear of elections.

Significantly, the contest for the Colombo Municipal Council would be one of the main attractions at the forthcoming LG polls. Colombo, over the years, has been a traditional UNP stronghold due to the overwhelming minority support it attracted. However, the UNP's humiliating defeat was evident at the last Western Provincial Council elections.

In contrast, the UPFA-led Government has transformed the metropolis into one of the most beautiful cities in the world. People from all strata of society are grateful to Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa, under whose personal supervision most of the development activities are taking place at a rapid pace today. Sri Lankans are elated of what Colombo looks today.

Colossal sums of money have been spent on beautifying the city and developing infrastructure facilities and the road network to international standards. A city which time and again suffered due to terror attacks has now been converted into a resplendent capital, sans terror. Today when most other world cities, including many big cities in South Asia and Europe are facing the risk of terror attacks, a cleaner and greener Colombo remains one of the safest capitals in the world at large.

The Government's next priority is to build decent houses and a better future for city dwellers. Plans are already under way to construct mega housing schemes for low income families in the city. The Government is keen on improving the living conditions of people by providing them better houses and sanitation facilities. Many self-employment projects too are in the pipeline to increase the purchasing power of people, whose multifarious skills could be harnessed in the Government's national development drive.

The Government has won the hearts of people who had never voted for the UPFA or the SLFP in their lives. A sizeable segment of Colombo's traditional UNPers has now reposed infinite faith in President Rajapaksa's people friendly Government which has opened new vistas for the rich and the poor alike.

All right-thinking people who have witnessed the incredible transformation of the Colombo city would undoubtedly further strengthen the hands of the President with a resounding victory at the forthcoming CMC polls. Time has come where people pay less importance to political affiliations. Politicians are generally judged by what they deliver.

Eradicating the three-decade scourge of terrorism and making the capital city peaceful and beautiful would impel people in the Colombo Municipal Council limits to help the Government achieve another landslide victory.