LG polls:

‘Contest keen in mixed community areas’

Chamikara WEERASINGHE

The contest of the poll appear to have been keen in areas where there is a mixed community, said Legal luminary Gomin Dayasiri on the outcome of the recently concluded Local Government elections.

“The results prove that the majority have conceded their support to the United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA), while a majority of votes in the North have gone to the Illankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi (ITAK),” he pointed out.

Gomin Dayasiri

When asked to comment on the disposition of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) after the polls, Dayasiri said the JVP appears to be a party of the past.

“The little support that Sarath Fonseka garnered at the general elections has been squandered by the JVP.”

The Democratic National Alliance (DNA) of Fonseka and JVP obtained 14 to 15 percent of votes in their mainstay electorates of Kaduwela and Kesbewa at the general election.

“This has been reduced to four percent at the recent election. Based on this result, the JVP may be able to obtain one seat under the national list at a parliamentary election,” he said.

The JVP votes have gone to UNP at Kesbewa and to UPFA at Kaduwela. The JVP votes where the UNP did not contest in areas such as Homagama, too have gone to UPFA, he noted.

Reflecting on the situation of the Northern Province, he said that it appears that the government’s massive development projects have not resulted in increasing votes.

“The reason for this is that the benefits of the government’s development work do not seem to have made a strong impact yet,” he pointed out.

The votes gathered by the government in the North, standing between 20 to 30 percent, show that it’s position in the North is similar to that of the UNP in the South, he explained.

The Muslim community has backed the UPFA more than the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress, Dayasiri said. The SLMC’s position is but a few pegs above that of the JVP, he said.

It must be noted that the people usually vote with the ruling party unless there is a Presidential or a General Election around the corner, he added.