Daily NEWS Srilanka

By now former President Mahinda Rajapaksa has been given nominations and finished. But the Maithri segment has still not taken action to accept about it in public. 

According to reports, until this decision was made known by President Maithripala on the 13th, others of that group too had kept mum. Even Minister Rajitha too had followed suit yesterday at the media briefing and had said, "though Mahinda had signed, the President's approval has still not been given no", slipping away as if he was not aware of it. However, as has been reported to us, President Maithripala had given his approval to Mahinda about 2 weeks before this during a clandestine rendezvous that took place at a well-known house in Colombo. Though Mahinda was given nominations by that time, since a decision was not taken in respect of his other colleagues, Maithri may not have worried about granting a solitary MP position in one region only, to him.

Bringing to memories the old story of how the Dutch got hold of Colombo, the efforts taken by the Mahinda segment had utilised all possible fighting methods to creep into the Alliance during the period that passed by. In the process, Nimal Siripala has had to drop all dreams about an Opposition Leader or Prime Minister. In this instance Susil and Anura have become the best accomplices of Mahinda in this procedure or course of action. Though the slogan displayed from the outside as for bringing about a conciliation of the Party, making a compromise between the Mahinda segment and the Maithri group did not turn out to be an easy task. Because of this very reason the Hela Urumaya backed out from Maithri while individuals such as S.B.Nawinna left the Party and looked the other way. Several protests emerged on this behalf. A foremost leading group of representatives of civil organisations had notified President Maithripala Sirisena on the 8th day-before-yesterday night that they are absolutely disappointed and worried over the act of bestowing nominations to the United People's Freedom Alliance.  It was learned that Gamini Wiyangoda, Professor Sarath Wijesuriya, Dr. Nirmal Ranjith Devasiri, Saman Rathnapriya, Ranjith Kirthi Tennakoon, Joseph Stalin, Dharmasiri Bandaranaike, Ravi Jayawardena and Dambara Amila Thero have attended this discussion which was held last Wednesday night at the Presidential Secretariat. Though Maduluwawe Sobhitha Thero was invited to function as the chairman of this discussion, he had rejected the invitation. 

President Maithripala had admitted for the first time at this discussion that he had to give nominations to Mahinda. He had very sensitively explained matters that he had had to give nominations to the former President which he expressed during this discussion which lasted for a period of about one half hours, it was reported. Addressing this audience what President Maithripala Sirisena had said was that he would be talking about his opinion in public about giving nominations to the Alliance on July 13th. At this point the President had remarked that it was the responsibility of the General Secretary of the Alliance relating to activities of the Alliance and that he did not mediate in such matters. At this juncture representatives of the civil organisations had inquired from the President whether he would stand side by side with the former President on the same stage to which query the President had confirmed to those gathered there that he would not.