One larger than Mahendran will stand in witness box: Prez

says PM first respondent for postponing PC polls  

President Maithripala Sirisena, former President Chandrika Kumaratunga and SLFP seniors seen at the convention. Pic by Pradeep Dilrukshana

By Sandun Jayasekera  

President Maithripala Sirisena said a person larger than Arjuna Mahendran will stand in the bond scam witness box in the coming days now that the legal documents to bring back the prime suspect of the Central Bank bomb scam had been completed.  

He said a certain politician said in Kuliyapitiya that the UNP made a blunder in 2015 by choosing a wrong man as the common presidential candidate but this time it would not do that mistake again and if the UNP did that blunder again the people would make them walk on the street naked.  “I like to tell that man that if I did not save the country from foreign influence, the selling of national assets to foreigners and destroying the country’s dignity by sacking the Prime Minister and replacing him with Mahinda Rajapaksa, this particular man would have not had even his loin cloth,” the President said.  Addressing the SLFP’s 68th annual convention at the Sugathadasa indoor stadium, the President  said Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe must take the full responsibility for repeatedly postponing provincial council elections. “According to what the Supreme Court has told me the main obstacle to conducting the PC polls is the delay in submitting the report by the three-member review committee led by the Prime Minister. 

Right now, no one knows when the PC polls could be held,” he said.   

The President said the elite class-led governance had destroyed the country economically, spiritually and financially. He said neo-liberal policies had a cancerous effect on each and every sector of the country and asked the people to be vigilant and put an end to these policies and politicians if the country was to rise up and progress.  

“Parliamentarians are corrupt, provincial councillors are corrupt, pradeshiya sabha members are corrupt. It is extremely difficult to get the approval for a building plan without paying millions of rupees as gratification to officials and politicians. The few in the elite political class has done much harm to the country. The need of the hour is to elect humane, patriotic, educated gentlemen to political office in place of corrupt, selfish and arrogant politicians,” the President said.

With the elections round the corner, government and opposition are fighting each other to woo the voters in the North giving so many pledges. Racism is the last resort of corrupt and extremist politicians who are trying to obtain power by hoodwinking the voter. 

“Some asked what I have done in the last four and half years in the government. I must say that I have restored the rule of law, democracy, independence of the judiciary and media. I have not turned a gun against a single citizen and killed any one during my time. I have not subjected media institutions to arson attack. I have not deployed the Presidential Security division to attack people who go against me. The Yahapalana government has done most for the benefit of the country and most of the plans I had in mind to do for the people have been disrupted because of the aggressive attitude of other section of the government, President Sirisena said. 

My fight at the 2015 Presidential poll as the common candidate was a swimming against the upstream. Ruling the country as the executive president after winning and forming the yahapalana government was a more difficult task as many of my plans were opposed by the government. 

“How many politicians want to build a corruption free, clean and democratic society? How many politicians want to do clean politics free of corruption? Neo liberalism is a fraud. A deceitful person who cross over to one party from another party like toads are interested only on their political survival. They think only on how they could return to Parliament at the next election. Their sole intention is how they could get a ministerial post or chairman post at a state establishment,” President Sirisena said. 

President Sirisena concluded by saying that 68th SLFP annual convention has made a paradigm shift in its journey in Sri Lanka’s political arena. From today onwards, SLFP would start a new political journey with a new vigour, enthusiasm and strength until it regain its lost momentum and achieve victory at the forthcoming polls. 

Senior Vice President of the SLFP, Nimal Siripala De Silva, General Secretary Dayasiri Jayasekara, General Secretary of the UPFA, Mahinda Amaraweera and Senior Vice President Prof. Rohana Lakshman Piyadasa also spoke. Former President Chandrika Kumaratunga and former Prime Minister D.M.Jayaratne were also present at the massive anniversary convention. 

According to what the Supreme Court has told me the main obstacle to conducting the PC polls is the delay in  submitting the report by the three-member review committee led by the  Prime Minister