August 17 will decide Sri Lanka’s fate
Posted on August 16th, 2015
By Janaka Perera
Without question the August 17 Parliamentary Election is going to be a most crucial one for Sri Lanka. The decision the majority of the voters take on Monday is bound to have the strongest impact on the Sinhalas, more than any other community. Never before in recent years have they been so polarized. Apparently it has turned almost into a ‘life-and-death’ battle between Mahinda lovers and Mahinda haters (rather than Ranil lovers).
This polarization, needless to say, is the outcome of external and internal forces inimical to Sri Lanka’s national interests exploiting to the maximum the blunders the Mahinda Rajapaksa regime made, especially after crushing the LTTE militarily in 2009.
Regardless of whether the Mahinda haters are going to be victorious or not the country’s tragedy is that in their obsession with what they call ‘good governance’ they have turned a virtual blind eye not only to the so-called Sinhalas among their camp who see no national importance in the Tigers’ defeat and the need to prevent their comeback by all means but also to the dubious deals struck with groups and individuals (some contesting on the UNP ticket in the North) who openly promote the cause of Tamil separatism and see Prabhakaran as a hero and liberator.
Was the appeal not to give nominations to corrupt individuals to ensure good governance anything new? People raised this issue a number of times during past elections. And are the slogans politicians have raised today unusual? They are virtually the same ones raised before.
Who are the lily white politicians among us today? If at all they may be a handful no matter which party they belong to. The difference between the politicians of one party and those of another in this matter is only in degree. It all depends how long they have been in power and the temptations. Although a few political leaders themselves may not be corrupt they have given their supporters the freedom to do so in order to remain in power.
A new generation of voters has emerged during the past decade. But the million rupee question is how many of them are aware of the country’s political history, at least since 1977. Undoubtedly some parties would wish to keep them in ignorance since it serves the groups’ dubious objectives.
Says Senior Attorney Kalyananda Thiranagama, Executive Director of ‘Lawyers for Human Rights Development’: Many politicians who talk about misdeeds of past regimes of which they were opponents, are themselves criminals. They always talk about others’ misdeeds not in order to prevent such wrongdoings but to seize power and create an opportunity for themselves to do the same. This is my experience of having worked against the corrupt and fraudulent activities of politicians for a long period.”
He regrets that one of the big mistakes the Rajapaksa Government made was its failure to investigate and punish the individuals and parties which attempted to obstruct at every turn the anti-LTTE military operations. He recalled the unsuccessful move to defeat the Budget and topple the government at the height of the war.
According to Attorney Thiranagama, every government in Sri Lanka has robbed public funds. He concluded that the real threat facing Sri Lanka is not corruption, bribery, frauds and other misdeeds but the very existence of Sri Lanka as a unitary state, its territorial integrity.
August 16th, 2015 at 4:08 pm
To the ALWAYS FAITHFUL Patriots,
A Heartfelt Tribute in Gratitude!
Semper Fidelis, Patriots of Lanka
By Ananda-USA
Our Motherland, resplendent Sri Lanka,
Hallowed be thy name!
Thy children flock today to vote,
To preserve thy immortal flame!
The Lion Flag flutters proudly aloft,
To remind us this freedom’s day!
Our duty to keep thee, safe and strong,
As our forefathers did yesterday!
A Mahinda Rajapaksa by deed and word,
Strode forth boldly to eternal fame!
To lead his people to a safer world,
When all others retreated in shame!
August 16th, 2015 at 4:30 pm
5 am in the morning in SL now. ALL political workers are UP.
I appeal to all patriots to COORDINATE voting wherever you are. We need more VEHICLES to transport UNWILLING and DISABLED voters to polling booths. UNP is ready with HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS of vehicles. Coordinate with your local contacts NOW!
Today is a WORKING DAY. Farmers, fishermen, laborers, other small timers CAN’T AFFORD to stop work and stay in queues to vote. They must be compensated to vote. UNP knows this very well. Coordinate with your local contacts NOW!
ONLY less than 25,000 SLs visit these websites daily. English poems can’t bring voters to vote!! We need much more than that to WIN the election.
August 16th, 2015 at 4:34 pm
Janaka, excellent advice to MR please Keep writing. I hope MR will not make the same mistakes again. Your last paragraph is the best. I wrote a letter to MR in February to his CARLTON HOUSE Tangalle, but not even an acknowledgement. What does this say. Please write about the MUSLIM US ambassador and tell him that we Buddhist want a Jew, Christian or a Buddhist for this position. After Muslim OBAMA goes Hilary must change him.
August 16th, 2015 at 4:40 pm
Lorenzo, I agree, but from USA to do what you are stating is difficult. English poems and web sites cannot win elections. 6.00 am Colombo time. Keep us informed.
August 16th, 2015 at 5:00 pm
SW,
Reading again, I did NOT make it that clear. Apologies.
I appeal to all patriots to COORDINATE voting wherever you are. We need more VEHICLES to transport UNWILLING and DISABLED voters to polling booths (especially in the afternoon). UNP is ready with HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS of vehicles – WE MUST COUNTER THIS. Otherwise it is UNFAIR for UPFA. Coordinate with your local SLFP contacts NOW!
Corrected.
August 17th, 2015 at 12:34 am
This CONGENITAL IDIOT Facebook Lorenzo, after his BOASTING at LankaWeb how he “single-handedly” OUSTED the MR/UPFA GoSL, STILL thinks that his TREACHERY WILL BE FORGOTTEN or FORGIVEN by us at LankaWeb!! NEVER!!
Even now he is BOASTING that he is “POLITIKING” in Sri Lanka CARTING VOTERS to POLLING stations?
Well, if he is doing that and is in Sri Lanka which I very much doubt like ALL OF HIS CLAIMS, he is raising votes for the TNA and the UNP, not the UFPA!
LORENZO the BLOODY SHAMELESS IDIOTIC TREACHEROUS HYPOCRITE!
August 17th, 2015 at 1:25 am
Police, army, navy and air fore personnel should make sure batalande butcher and his pathalayin not going to rig votes!
IMPORTANT INFO FOR POLICE, ARMY, NAVY AND AIRFORCE PERSONNEL
Remember police, army and navy deaths during the alugosu jr, alugosu lk premadasa and alugous batalande butcher era? Everwhere in the country, funerals of policemen, army/navy/airforce men women blown up by the terrorists.
If you want that period back, turn a blind eye to batalande butcher and his pathalyin vote rigging activities.
Also don’t forget lk premadasaya’s 600 policemen in the east sending to ltte bullet and batalande butcher’s giving millennium city intelligent officers’ details to ltte.
August 17th, 2015 at 7:25 pm
MR has conceded DEFEAT … See below.
The STUPID Sinhala People who voted for MORE YAMAPALANAYA will SHED RIVERS of TEARS inn the next 5 years, as Sri Lanka is DIVIDED into 3 separate countries.
You have SOWED the seeds of your OWN DESTRUCTION … do not blame ANYONE ELSE for what HAPPENS!
…………………
Sri Lanka’s former president concedes defeat in parliamentary elections
Aug 18, Colombo: Sri Lanka’s former president Mahinda Rajapakse has accepted that his party has lost in the parliamentary elections held Monday but has said that he would work as an opposition member of parliament, AFP reported today.
“My dream of becoming prime minister has faded away,” Mr Rajapaksa has told AFP. “I am conceding. We have lost a good fight.”
The former president has reportedly accepted that United People’s Freedom Alliance had lost the election even before Elections Commissioner Mahinda Deshapriya could announce the final results.
He has pointed out that the UPFA has won eight districts out of the 22 and the government party United national Party (UNP) has gained 11 districts. The remaining three districts have been secured by the Tamil national Alliance (TNA).
“We have won eight districts and the UNP (ruling United National Party) has 11 (out of a total of 22),” Rajapakse said. “This means we have lost. It was a difficult fight.”
AFP reported that the official figures showed the same breakdown of results.
According to results released so far the UNP has significantly increased its voter base at this election. However, no party has received enough seats to secure the majority of 113 seats in the 225- member parliament.
It has been speculated that some SLFP MPs loyal to the President Maithripala Sirisena would join with the UNP to form a national government.
The Elections Commissioner is expected to release the final party positions by midday Tuesday, according to the AFP report. Preference votes secured by individual candidates would be announced later.
According to the election monitoring groups and election officials Monday’s parliamentary election was the most peaceful in the recent history.
August 17th, 2015 at 7:28 pm
Sri Lanka’s BACKSTABBING President, Somarama Sirisena has MUCH TO ANSWER for to the Supporters of the SLFP/UPFA and the PATRIOTIC citizens and the Armed Forces who SHED their BOLD to Defend and Protect Sri Lanka!
There has NEVER BEEN a TRAITOR BIGGER than him in the ENTIRE HISTORY of Sri Lanka!