By Vijitha Herath, MP, (JVP)-
The forthcoming presidential election is illegal. The propaganda campaign of the government too is illegal. Minister Mahinda Amaraweera said everybody in the government have eaten enough and now they only need watalappan for dessert. The people in the government are confronted with a predicament due to holding the presidential election before it was due so that those in the government could to eat watalappan for dessert. There is a fable that should be told to explain this well. In ancient times in India at a party given to Brahmins one Brahmin had consumed excessively and was in a very difficult state. Another Brahmin advised him to put a finger in his mouth and vomit to get relief. Then the Brahmin who was suffering from over eating says if he could put a finger in his mouth he would prefer to push a plantain in his mouth. The ministers of this government have been consuming voraciously since 2005.
The presidential election that was scheduled to be called in 2016 was called two years earlier by Mahinda Rajapaksa himself. He has got agitated and alarmed when the election he himself called becomes disadvantageous for him. Also, the henchman of the ‘palace’ too has got jittery. The Secretary General of the SLFP Maithripala and a group left the government. Mahinda got jittery due to that. The stooge to the ‘palace’ too got jittery. This henchman who is jittery now talks of an international conspiracy while going shopping for the ‘palace’.
If there is a conspiracy it was invited none other than by Mahinda Rajapaksa. The presidential election was called not by embassies, diaspora or international forces. The main accused of the conspiracy is Mahinda Rajapaksa. The truth is this is a ‘watalappan conspiracy’ of the palace. Now the President has lost sanity and mutter nonsense. What ministers say is contradictory. They do not come for TV debates. They say they would not come if the JVP takes part. Some ministers who come for political programmes get agitated and excited. They suddenly leave programmes giving petty excuses.
Minister Dullas Alahapperuma says he would vote with both hands to abolish executive presidency. Dulles raised both his hands to get 18th amendment adopted. Minister Vasudeva Nanayakkara says he would support Maithripala if he abolishes the executive presidency. If there is an international conspiracy to abolish executive presidency Minister Dulles Alahapperuma too should be a part of that conspiracy. This government has been disturbed like maniacs in a lunatic asylum getting stirred up when it is bombed. As soon as Maithripala and a group left the government and started campaigning the government was bewildered. The President came out with a ‘story of files’ as he was stupefied and was in a rage. When the President says he has files of ministers the people know that ministers who are involved in frauds and corruption are in the government. People also know about the person who talks about files. The people have comprehended the story the ‘king of files’ talks about. Once the President said an eight month old baby, who cannot utter even the word ‘mother’, said ‘cheers’ to him. Why does the President who is known even to an eight month old child hang his cutout on light posts throughout the country? He blatantly violates election laws. The Commissioner of Elections or the Police are unable to remove his cutouts. These cutouts are put up deploying state institutions. Employees of Pradeshiya Sabhas and urban councils are engaged in his campaign using vehicles of state institutions. Employees of state institutions are helpless. Despite staff grade officers of state services are banned from engaging in politics, Defense Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa gets on to political stages using his brother’s arbitrary powers.
Now, distribution of Rs.2500 has commenced in villages. Relief is distributed in Badulla area stating the area suffered due to rain. President’s election campaign is carried out by companies such as Avant-Garde. Officers of Terrorist Investigation Division are deployed for his election campaign. Advertisements are published in newspapers using money from institutions such as CEB and CPC. Millions are spent for advertisements in TV channels. Pensioners are bribed using state institutions. They are given new telephone connections known as ‘kalaguna’. Using state resources and assets for President’s election campaign this way is a serious crime.
The government that doesn’t give relief to the people, even when it is possible to do so, brings down prices of petrol, diesel and gas when it is faced with an election. A small reduction in prices is given to quell the people’s opposition to the government.
At present the price of a barrel of crude oil has come down to US$69. The advantage of this reduced price could be given to the people. But the government doesn’t want to do so. In 2005 a cylinder of gas was Rs. 850. Before Uva Presidential election Rajapaska government had increased this price by Rs.1546 and the price of a cylinder was Rs.2396. Rs.250 was reduced for the Uva election. Now due to the presidential election Rs.250 has been reduced. However, the price of a cylinder of gas has been increased by Rs.1046 since 2005. If excess taxes added for gas, petrol and diesel are reduced people could be given relief as prices in the world market are going down. If one or two more ministers cross over to the opposition diesel and petrol would be given free! As such, people could get more relief if they pressurize the government. Those who have come out of the government have started saying what the JVP has been saying. We are happy that those who were ministers in the government now say what we said to the people.
At the moment the government attempts to deploy various groups against the JVP and the opposition. Mahinda Rajapaksa who asked to have a clean election campaign has started sling mud at his opponents. The government held a media discussion using a mudslinging group recently. The head of this group was former MP Anurudha Polgampola sacked from the JVP in 2008. He was sacked from the JVP as he, using his Parliamentary privileges, tried to take one of his brothers to Japan to earn money. Upul, former provincial council member, who was another in the group, supported Mr. Maithripala Sirisena in 2010 general election. The government is so bankrupt to use such people to sling mud. At present the chief attacker against the government is the leader of our party Comrade Anura Dissanayaka. The government that is unable to endure this attack has sent circulars to officials to find irregularities in ‘Ten Tanks’ project launched by Comrade Anura Dissanayaka when he was a minister. This government can never come up with such unsuccessful attempts.
As such, this despotic executive presidential system should be abolished. We have begun a struggle for this. We are taking measures to remove Rajapaksa family rule. We are paving the way for the people to do what is necessary for it.”
Edited version of a speech by Vijitha Herath, MP publicized in Lanka truth