Southern PC dissolved

Uditha Kumarasinghe

*The UPFA won 36 seats and the UNP 19 seats at the last SPC election held in 2004

*The Southern Province is divided into the Galle, Hambantota and Matara districts.

The Southern Provincial Council (SPC) was dissolved by the Government at midnight yesterday.Southern Province Governor Kumari Balasuriya issued the special gazette notification to dissolve the SPC at midnight yesterday.

The term of office of the SPC is due to expire on August 14. The polls for the SPC are scheduled to be held in mid October this year, Government sources told the Daily News last night.

The selection of candidates for the UPFA contesting the election has already been finalised, they said.

Of the eight Provincial Councils presently in operation, the SPC remains to be the only PC that is yet to have conducted fresh polls. Before the dissolution of the SPC, the Government dissolved the Uva Provincial Council and fixed August 8 as the date to conduct the elections for the Uva PC.

The SPC is the only PC to conclude it's four year term of office and all other PCs were dissolved before their term expired.

The Government has already conducted elections to six Provincial Councils. The Eastern PC election was held in May last year followed by the Sabaragamuwa PC polls while the North Central Provincial Council election was held in August of the same year.

The Central and Wayamba PC elections were held earlier this year while the Western Provincial Council election was held in April this year.

According to the 2001 census, the total population of the province is 2,278,271.