'More UNP MPs would join Govt. ranks'

The internal conflict within the UNP took a new turn on Wednesday when Kurunegala District UNP Parliamentarian Dayasiri Jayasekara resigned from Parliament announcing his decision to lead the UPFA campaign at the North Western Provincial Council election for a resounding victory and become its Chief Minister. When various

crossovers from the main Opposition UNP to the Government have been a common phenomenon in the past, MP Jayasekara's resignation became quite significant as he did not cross over to the Government to obtain any Ministerial portfolio like other Opposition MPs. He has decided to contest the North Western Provincial Council polls under the UPFA ticket to seek a fresh mandate from the people in the province.

Making a special statement on the floor of the House, the outgoing MP said that he had decided to resign from his UNP parliamentary seat as he did not wish to accept a portfolio and bring disrepute to the people who voted for him. When UNP MP Sajith Premadasa was speaking on the second day of the debate on the Sri Lanka Electricity (Amendment) Bill, MP Jayasekera took his seat in the Chamber. After MP Premadasa concluded his speech, MP Jayasekara sought permission from the Speaker to make a special statement. During his speech, Jayasekara severely criticized the UNP leadership of inaction while Opposition Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe remained in his seat patiently listening to the allegations. A large number of Government legislators in the Chamber was listening attentively to Jayasekara's speech. Sometimes they thumped their desks fully endorsing certain remarks made by him.

The MP's entire speech was centered on the plight of the UNP under the present leadership and the genuine reasons which led him to quit the party and join the UPFA. Despite the disturbances by the UNP MPs, Jayasekara continuing his speech pledged that he would share the efforts of uniting Sri Lanka within the next ten years under the stewardship of President Mahinda Rajapaksa. Ignoring the interruptions by the Opposition members, he said that the UNP leadership is incompetent and the party supporters have suffered for over 20 years without a ray of hope for victory. The defiant MPs who questioned this malaise had to come under the guillotine. He explained how the present leader had extended his term for another six years introducing dictatorial clauses to the UNP constitution. Jayasekara told those UNP MPs who disturbed him that they would also face the same fate like him very soon under Wickremesinghe's dictatorship.

In his hard-hitting speech, Jayasekera said that the UNP vote base has eroded to such a deplorable level that the party has been reduced to doing only 'voice-cut politics'. The UNP is doomed to lose. The MP predicted that the UNP would certainly lose at the forthcoming Provincial elections and vowed to lead the UPFA campaign in the North Western Province to a resounding victory. Jayasekera said that as he started his political career in the SLFP, he is also going back to the SLFP, his ancestral home in politics.

MP Jayasekara said that those who had led the struggle against the UNP's dictatorial leadership have become victims of a witch-hunt. Some of them have lost their membership, designations and positions. He accused that the present leadership had alienated hundreds of party supporters and organizers, local level politicians from the party in the manner Joseph Stalin, the Russian despot purged the Communist Party in Russia. As a result, a large number of UNP stalwarts had crossed over to the Government.

Jayasekara described the UNP bosses' leadership as unpatriotic. Citing an example he told the House that when the Government troops were waging a war against the LTTE terror in 2008, the UNP Leader with some retired colonels briefed his MPs that the Army was losing the war. Rains would come, and military trucks and tanks would get stuck in the mud and the advancing forces would come to a standstill so that the LTTE mortars kill them all, he had said. Wickremesinghe thought both the economy and the Government would fall due to loosing war against LTTE terror.

Soon after MP Jayasekara concluded his speech, Chief Opposition Whip John Amaratunga told the Speaker that the time given to MP Jayasekara should be set against the time allocated to the Government as the MP did not speak on behalf of the Opposition. On Amaratunga's request the Speaker permitted MP Harin Fernando to speak next.

Housing Minister Wimal Weerawansa raising a point of order said that MP Jayasekera's criticism was centered on Opposition Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe and as such time should be given to him to reply. The Opposition Leader said he would reply during the debate. When MP Jayasekara was about to leave the Chamber, the government MPs sitting on the Opposition side shook hands and hugged him. MP Jayasekara who held a special press conference in Parliament alleged that he and Matara District UNP MP Buddhika Pathirana had become victims of sexual harassment. He said the UPFA Government would not be changed for another ten years and more MPs from the UNP ranks would follow him in joining the Government soon.

Although the debate in the House was on the Sri Lanka Electricity (Amendment) Bill, it was more or less centered on the resignation of Dayasiri Jayasekara from the UNP. The UNP MP Harin Fernando spent the entire time allocated to him in criticising MP Jayasekara's move to resign from the UNP. Certain remarks by UNP MPs Harin Fernando and Ranjan Ramanayake prompted Ministers Mahindananda Aluthgamage, Dilan Perera and Rohitha Abeygunawardene to respond instantly.

Sometimes verbal blows too erupted between Minister Dilan Perera and MP Ranjan Ramanayake. Minister Perera in his hard-hitting speech said that Dayasiri should remain in the political spectrum and continue in politics.

Senior Minister and Chairman of the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) D.E.W. Gunasekera presenting the second COPE report in Parliament on Tuesday said nine public enterprises had shown a steady progress in earning profits and another 38 institutions have increased their profits, having given effect to the recommendations of the previous COPE report.

The Minister in his report has stressed the need to improve the quality of leadership of public enterprises through the appointment of skilled and competent people. The Report has also urged the Government to take immediate steps to implement its recommendations to bring about "radical changes in the existing policies" to avoid the collapse of 72 more public enterprises. Chief Opposition Whip John Amaratunga said that the COPE report should be taken up for debate before the next Budget in November this year. He also stressed the need for printing the Report as early as possible. Otherwise, the MPs would not be able to conduct the debate without the printed copies of the report.