Video: SLFPers did not vote for me: Solangaarachchi

26 August 2015 03:02 pm Views - 12411

Provincial councilor Prasanna Solangaarachchi said today SLFPers neither understood him nor voted for him at the last general election.

“SLFP supporters did not vote for me. Only my well-wishers, friends and school mates voted for me. If at all there might have only been a handful of SLFPers who voted for me. But I am not angry with them,” he said.

Mr. Solangaarachchi told Daily Mirror that people allowed their emotions to take the upper hand but that though he was defeated, his principles were intact.
“My political principles were not defeated. People defeated me. I have no qualms about my defeat. The parties which joined the UPFA did their best to defeat the SLFPers,” he said.

Mr. Solangaarachchi said former president Mahinda Rajapaksa, who led the UPFA’s election campaign at the general election, defeated them, and that they would work with President Maithripala Sirisena so that they would not be defeated again.

“People rejected us. That is their right. We cannot take it by force. Former president Mahinda Rajapaksa defeated us and we defeated him. So people feel that we are strong. We will work with President Maithripala Sirisena and other party officials to take the party forward,” he said.


Mr.Solangaarachchi said Hirunika Premachandra won the election by contesting on the UNP ticket whereas he had wanted to win the election as a true SLFPer. He congratulated Ms Premachandra on her election victory.

He said they were ready to accept Kuamara Welgama as the opposition leader and that he hoped Mr. Welgama would act with President Maithripala Sirisena and SLFP leaders without going behind defeated leaders.(Sanath Desmond)