‘WPC victory reflects UPFA’s national thinking’

LAKSHMI DE SILVA

In a few hours or in few days the brutal terrorism in the north would take its last journey and a new Sri Lankan nation will begin to develop. Therefore everyone should rally round President Mahinda Rajapaksa to rebuild it, Transport and Railways Minister Dullas Alahapperuma said at the final UPFA press conference held at the Mahaweli Centre Colombo yesterday.

Western Provincial Council election victory for the UPFA reflected national thinking shedding differences of religion or ethnicity or regional background, he said.

The UNP had lost its bastion Colombo district in the Provincial Council election like the LTTE losing Killinochchi. Giving statistical analyses to give reasons for their defeat was a hilarious exercise the Minister said.

Though the UNP claim the percentage of votes had decreased it had actually increased from 47.83 percent to 59 percent in Colombo district 56 percent to 61 percent in Kalutara district 61 percent to 63 percent in Gampaha district from 2004 to 2009, Alahapperuma noted.

Health Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva said the UNP had not felt the pulse of the people and they ridiculed the victories of the Armed Forces. UNP also obstructed the inflow of the aid funds from INGOs and NGOs but supported the LTTE. Therefore the people rejected the UNP and even strong UNPers joined hands with the UPFA eroding the strength of the UNP.

Whatever statistics the UNP put forward it had suffered the 19th defeat entering the Guiness Book of Records, he noted.

The JVP also lost peoples support scoring only 2.4 percent of votes thanks to J. R. Jayawardene’s Proportional Representation System they retained 3 seats but they may not get a single seat in the next parliamentary elections the Minister said.

UPFA had secured a higher percentage of votes than forecast by opinion polls held before the election. That showed the people strongly endorsed the policies of the Mahinda Rajapaksa Government said UPFA General Secretary and Minister of Education Susil Premajayantha.

The present JVP leadership was not capable of leading their membership or how to face defeat. The best thing the JVP memberships could do now is to corporate with President Mahinda Rajapaksa who defeated terrorism and started a new socio economic war to develop the country, National Freedom Front leader Wimal Weerawansa said.

President Mahinda Rajapaksa folded the terrorist map of the North and East, but he unfolded the democratic election map from the East to West wining all the provincial elections. The President also folded the UNP map of conspiracies. Now it was the beginning of a new war of socio economic development, Housing Minister Geethanjana Gunawardene said.