My dear ‘Basnahira’ voter,

I thought I must write to you because at the end of this week you will be walking to the polling booth to mark that all important cross on the ballot paper that will give the citizens of the western province the council that will govern them for the nextfew years.

I wouldn’t blame if you are more than a little confused, dear voter. That is because over the last few weeks we have seen so many ‘daksha’ ‘avanka’, ‘edithara’, ‘buddhimath’ politicians crop up amidst the sidewalks, grinning at us and worshipping us from all kinds of cut-outs, hoardings, posters and handbills. So, you must be having a really hard time deciding which one you should vote for!
Now, you must be wondering why there are so many incidents of violence, intimidation and even a few murders before the election with so many ‘daksha’ ‘avanka’, ‘edithara’, ‘buddhimath’ candidates in the fray.

Well, dear voter, that is only to be expected because among these ‘daksha’ ‘avanka’, ‘edithara’, ‘buddhimath’ lot, there are quite a few who have been tried for an assorted array of crimes-although most of them haven’t been convicted as yet!

But then, that is hardly surprising is it, because we live in a country where even terrorists can shed their Tiger stripes almost overnight and be hailed as heroes and join the cabinet-so what harm does it do if an accused in a criminal case enters a mere provincial council?

I suppose the first decision you would have to take, dear voter, is whether you vote for the blues, greens or reds. Most people believe that the winners are a foregone conclusion at least in the Gampaha and Kalutara districts. The big question is whether the same fate will await the greens in the Colombo district, in which case the greens will have to do some serious soul searching.

Knowing them, the first thing they do would be to start yet another attempt to oust the Green Leader-and we all know where that will end, don’t we? Another committee will be appointed to study reforms within the party and the more things change, the more they will stay the same!

So, I wouldn’t blame you if you decide that a vote for the greens is a wasted vote. But then you should remember that in democracies such as ours people not only get the government they deserve, they also get an opposition they don’t deserve. So, think about that carefully before you mark that cross, will you?
However, if you decide to vote for the blues you will have a bigger problem on your hands, dear voter. How on earth are you going to decide on your preferences? There are former chief ministers, there are ‘wedak karana’ people and then there are those who help old ladies to cross the road and then go round kissing babies-among other things, we are told-so your task will be really difficult!

Of course, scattered among these candidates are the Weerawansa types as well as the ‘Urumaya’ types. No one really cares whether they win or lose but it will certainly be interesting to see whether all these people who talk big can really translate their words into votes. If that doesn’t materialise, it will only be a matter of time before they are swallowed up by the ever growing giant blue party...

The Elections Commissioner-bless him, he ought to be retired several times over by now, but he soldiers on thanks to the lack of a Constitutional Council which Mahinda maama is not appointing-has asked you to vote early, so follow that advice, dear voter or else, one of those ‘daksha’ ‘avanka’, ‘edithara’, ‘buddhimath’ people will cast your vote on your behalf!

Yours truly,
Punchi Putha

PS-And why are the blues complaining that Mahinda maama is not campaigning for them? Why, only the other day, we saw him give a sterling performance at a rally in Kilinochchi, didn’t we?