41 candidates in LG nomination lists elected to P’ment

Dullas calls for cancellation of lists  

Former Minister Dullas Alahapperuma who is the leader of Freedom People’s Congress requested President Anura Kumara Dissanayake to scrap nomination papers submitted nearly two years ago in view of the elections to the local authorities due to reasons such as candidates migrating, passing away, switching party allegiances, or becoming inactive due to dissatisfaction with their political circumstances.  

In a letter addressed to the President and copied to the Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition, Public Administration and Local Government Ministry, the registered political parties and the media outlets, Mr. Alahapperuma said as many as 41 candidates who sought to contest the local election had been elected to Parliament on the NPP ticket.  The previous government postponed the election. Later, the Supreme Court, upon hearing petitions, ordered the Election Commission to conduct polls forthwith.   

“Twenty –two months have lapsed since conclusion of nomination for the election on January 21, 2023. It is almost half of the term of a local authority. During the period, two national elections have been concluded with you becoming the President and your party taking control of Parliament. During the period, a lot of candidates have gone abroad, switched allegiances to different parties, decided to stay silent over disillusionment with their own parties or died. It has created confusion in nomination papers. The best example is that 41 candidates who submitted nomination to contest the local election have now been elected to Parliament on the ticket of NPP. It is not appropriate with the election to the local authorities based on these nomination lists,” he wrote.