The Diyawanna council the other day took up for debate a motion related to the country’s trade relations presented by a Green party purohita in yahapalanaya.

At the very start of the debate, the JO members insisted that the motion be put to a vote after the debate given the proposal’s possible far reaching impact on the country’s economy.

The purohita concerned remained in the chamber throughout the sitting on the day of the debate. However, it was obvious from the conduct of the Green backbenchers that they were not interested in backing the motion. 

And their non-co-operative attitude became more conspicuous when they made themselves scarce by the time the vote on it was due to be taken. 

However, by a strange turn of luck, the JO members who insisted on a vote in the morning had later agreed to the adoption of the motion without calling for a division. 

If the JO insisted on a vote on the motion, the purohita concerned would have suffered loss of face for the defeat of the motion was a cinch, they say.