{"id":45753,"date":"2015-07-15T21:46:00","date_gmt":"2015-07-16T03:46:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=45753"},"modified":"2015-07-15T14:42:15","modified_gmt":"2015-07-15T21:42:15","slug":"slfp-counters-ms-declares-mr-as-campaign-leader-and-reactions-to-sirisenas-betrayal-%e0%b6%b8%e0%b7%9b%e0%b6%ad%e2%80%8d%e0%b7%8a%e2%80%8d%e0%b6%bb%e0%b7%93%e0%b6%9c%e0%b7%9a-%e0%b6%b4","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2015\/07\/15\/slfp-counters-ms-declares-mr-as-campaign-leader-and-reactions-to-sirisenas-betrayal-%e0%b6%b8%e0%b7%9b%e0%b6%ad%e2%80%8d%e0%b7%8a%e2%80%8d%e0%b6%bb%e0%b7%93%e0%b6%9c%e0%b7%9a-%e0%b6%b4\/","title":{"rendered":"SLFP counters MS; declares MR as campaign leader; and Reactions to Sirisena\u2019s Betrayal-\u0db8\u0ddb\u0dad\u200d\u0dca\u200d\u0dbb\u0dd3\u0d9c\u0dda \u0db4\u0dc5\u0dd4 \u0d85\u0dbb\u0dd3"},"content":{"rendered":"

Mahinda confers with UPFA leaders at SLFP hq<\/b><\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n

By Shamindra Ferdinando\u00a0Courtesy Island<\/span><\/em><\/h2>\n

The SLFP yesterday strongly denied President Maithripala Sirisena\u2019s accusation that the party had conspired to appoint former President Mahinda Rajapaksa to Parliament through the National List by moving a no-faith motion against Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.<\/p>\n

UPFA General Secretary Susil Premajayantha insisted that in accordance with the Parliamentary Elections Act of 1981, only a person named in the original National List submitted to the Elections Secretariat along with nominations for the last parliamentary election or an unsuccessful candidate at the same election could be appointed.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Premajayantha was addressing the media at SLFP headquarters at T. B. Jayah Mawatha, following consultations with senior representatives of the UPFA presided over by former President Rajapaksa. The UPFA General Secretary was flanked by SLFP General Secretary Anura Priyadarshana Yapa and other party seniors, John Seneviratne, Dullas Alahapperuma and Kumara Welgama.<\/p>\n

Rajapaksa is leading the UPFA nomination list for the Kurunegala District.<\/p>\n

President Maithripala Sirisena on Tuesday alleged that the party had conspired to make his predecessor Prime Minister after having brought him in through the National List. The President claimed that he had dissolved parliament to thwart the Rajapaksa\u2019s effort.<\/p>\n

Premajayantha said that the UPFA was going ahead with its campaign with the inaugural meeting taking place in Anuradhapura tomorrow (July 17). Premajayantha said that the former President would lead the campaign. Responding to a query, Premajayantha said that he, on behalf of the UPFA, had requested the former President to function as the Chairman of the Elections Operations Unit on July 3, 2015. The SLFP also released copies of the letter sent by Premajayantha to Mahinda Rajapaksa consequent to an understanding reached at a meeting presided over by President Maithripala Sirisena.<\/p>\n

Premajayantha and other SLFP seniors pointed out that the former President had been asked to lead the campaign nearly two weeks before President Maithripala Sirisena\u2019s Tuesday\u2019s declaration that he would remain impartial.<\/p>\n

Alahapperuma pointed out that President Sirisena had expressed a similar opinion in the run-up to the January 8 presidential poll and after.<\/p>\n

Referring to President Sirisena\u2019s call for Central Bank Governor Arjuna Mahendran\u2019s resignation over his alleged involvement in Central Bank bond scam, Premajayantha said that the caretaker government couldn\u2019t turn a blind eye to the President\u2019s declaration. Premjayantha asserted that the President wouldn\u2019t have requested Premier Wickremesinghe to get rid of Mahendran if he hadn\u2019t been convinced that the Governor was at fault.<\/p>\n

Premajayantha said that he was a member of the 13-member parliamentary group that had inquired into the alleged bond scam.<\/p>\n

Premajayantha also condemned what he called Yahapalana <\/i>government for calling for a national level election in the midst of GCE A\/L examination in August. The UPFA General Secretary alleged thatYahapalana<\/i> leaders had called for fresh elections to save the UNP at the expense of the student community.<\/p>\n

Premajayantha said that the alliance would go flat out to secure a majority in next parliament under the leadership of former President Rajapaksa.<\/p>\n

SLFP General Secretary Anura Priyadarshana Yapa spoke of efforts being made by seniors to iron out differences between the two warring factions since Maithripala Sirisena succeeded Mahinda Rajapaksa as the leader of the SLFP. Yapa stressed that their efforts were meant to unify the party to defeat the UNP at the next parliamentary elections. The top SLFP official expressed serious concern over some in the SLFP indirectly helping the UNP. When The Island <\/i>asked whether he was commenting on President Maithripala Sirisena\u2019s broadside at his predecessor, Yapa stressed the importance of preserving two-party system. Yapa said that one couldn\u2019t undermine one\u2019s own party to the benefit of the other.<\/p>\n

SLFP seniors said that they would take up contentious matters with President Maithripala Sirisena at the relevant forum. They strongly denied claims that they were planning to remove Maithripala Sirisena in the immediate aftermath of his unprecedented attack. Yapa insisted that the SLFP wouldn\u2019t discuss internal matters with the media. Instead take tangible actions to address issues, including disciplinary measures against party members contesting the parliamentary polls on the UNP ticket.<\/p>\n

Asked whether the party had been troubled by President\u2019s move, particularly his declaration that Mahinda Rajapaksa would lose again, SLFP seniors insisted that 99 per cent of supporters remained loyal to the former President. They pointed out that they were in the fray under the former President\u2019s leadership because they had faith in him. Welgama said that they were party seniors and they believed the former President should be the Prime Minister in the next parliament.<\/p>\n

Seneviratne pointed out that as President Maithripala Sirisena himself had declared that the next Premier would be selected after the election depending on the support he could muster from the parliamentary group, Rajapaksa wouldn\u2019t have any difficulty. Welgama insisted that the party solidly stood behind the former leader.<\/p>\n

The SLFP said that in fact the President\u2019s statement had galvanized the party overnight and the largest group in last parliament was ready to take up the challenge.<\/p>\n

Alahapperuma said that he was among those millions of supporters who had been shocked and shaken by President Maithripala Sirisena\u2019s move. The former minister pointed out that the President had dissolved a parliament in which the UPFA had a clear majority in order to save the minority government. Alahapperuma said that the supporters were justified in suspecting whether the presidential statement was meant to give an advantage to the UNP.<\/p>\n

President betrayed SLFP to benefit UNP: Prasanna<\/span><\/h2>\n

Daily Mirror<\/span><\/em>
\nWestern Province Chief Minister Prasanna Ranatunga charged today that President Maithripala Sirisena had indirectly acted to cover up corruption by dissolving Parliament before the no confidence motion against the government could be taken up.<\/p>\n

He said the no confidence motion was to be brought against the government following the Central Bank bond scam, and there was no action taken regarding it since Parliament was disolved.<\/p>\n

\u0db8\u0ddb\u0dad\u200d\u0dca\u200d\u0dbb\u0dd3\u0d9c\u0dd9\u0db1\u0dca \u0dbd\u0ddd\u0d9a \u0dc0\u0dcf\u0dbb\u0dca\u0dad\u0dcf\u0dc0\u0d9a\u0dca.. \u0dad\u0db8 \u0db4\u0d9a\u0dca\u200d\u0dc2\u0dba \u0db4\u0dbb\u0daf\u0db1\u0dca\u0db1 \u0dad\u0dd3\u0dbb\u0dab\u0dba \u0d9a\u0dbd \u0dbd\u0ddc\u0dc0 \u0db4\u0dbd\u0db8\u0dd4 \u0db4\u0d9a\u0dca\u200d\u0dc2 \u0db1\u0dcf\u0dba\u0d9a\u0dba\u0dcf<\/a><\/span><\/h2>\n

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