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SLFP not “swallowed up” by the SLPP – Prof. Rohana Luxman
With President Maithripala Sirisena choosing to remain neutral during the run up to the Presidential Election, the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), which he heads, this week appointed Prof. Rohana Luxman Piyadasa as its Acting Chairman, until the conclusion of the November 16 poll.
Prof. Rohana Luxman Piyadasa - Pic by Amila Gamage
In an interview with the Sunday Times, shortly after the SLFP signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP), on Thursday (10), to back its candidate Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Prof. Piyadasa insisted that the SLFP had not been “swallowed up” by the SLPP. He however, added that the party needed to “face reality” and support a candidate with whom they could find common ground, while gradually rebuilding the party.
Prof. Piyadasa revealed that, the SLFP discussed 4 options on how to proceed regarding the 2019 Presidential Election.
“We had the options of fielding our own candidate, remaining independent, supporting a candidate from the United National Party (UNP) or supporting a common candidate. All 4 options were discussed among various groups within the party. In the end, it came down to 2 options.
Whether to support a common candidate or field one ourself. However, the party’s Central Committee had already been discussing the need to form a broad alliance representing a leftist candidate and, after much deliberation, we decided to support the candidacy of Gotabaya Rajapaksa,” he explained.
He said the decision to support Mr Rajapaksa came after lengthy and, at times, extremely heated deliberations, conducted from grassroots level all the way to the party’s Central Committee. “This does not mean we support the flower bud (pohottuwa) symbol,” the acting SLFP Chairman stressed, adding that, they tried hard to convince the SLPP to agree to a common symbol. However, as the Legal avenues for this gradually receded, a decision was taken to support Mr Rajapaksa, irrespective of the symbol.
Accordingly, the SLFP and the SLPP agreed to sign 3 MoUs. The 1st of these was signed on Thursday (10). A separate MoU between the SLFP and candidate Gotabaya Rajapaksa will be signed once Mr Rajapaksa returns from Singapore, where he is undergoing medical treatment. A 3rd MoU will be signed on the formation of a grand alliance between the SLFP, other parties in the United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) and the SLPP.
With the SLFP’s support for Mr Rajapaksa now assured, the party will work on supporting his campaign from the grassroots level up.
“Campaigning will be conducted both in coordination with the SLPP as well as by the SLFP separately,” Prof. Piyadasa explained.
Prof. Piyadasa though, said the Presidential Election was only a means to an end. “If we are to change the direction of this country, the primary focus should be the next Parliamentary Election. However, in our country’s political culture, if we are to successfully move to a Parliamentary Election, we must win the Presidential Election first.”
He claimed that, according to all the research he is privy to, nearly 40% of the voters are undecided on their choice. “Young people especially, are disillusioned, blaming the existing system for the injustices they have suffered. Though 70 years have passed since independence, we have failed to provide enough opportunities to all those who pass the A/Level examination. As such, the SLFP will propose that a commitment be made in the election manifesto, to admit 100,000 students to the country’s State universities. We have a programme to make this a success.”
Prof. Piyadasa rejected the notion that the SLPP had already “swallowed up” the SLFP. “Some might claim that is the case, but whether that happens depends on how strategically we approach it. What matters is not the number of heads we have, but our intellectual approach. We believe we have the vision to move forward, while protecting our identity.”
He said he was happy to note that Gotabaya Rajapaksa has publicly rejected neo-liberal economic policies and expressed commitment to a production oriented economy, with a local vision. “We believe we can make positive inputs to his vision. For example, he has pledged to provide the fertiliser subsidy. We would like to make an input that he commits to organic fertiliser. We want to advance ideas such as building an industrialised nation, while strengthening the country’s multi-ethnic, multi-cultural identity.”
The decision to support the SLPP candidate received the backing of all SLFP MPs, Prof Piyadasa emphasised, adding that, he did not believe there would be defections to the UNP, on account of it. He noted they were in continuous dialogue with the MPs and were obtaining their inputs on how to further advance cooperation.
Regarding the elections that will come after the Presidential Poll, Prof. Piyadasa stated that the SLFP has proposed that the alliance contest under the ‘chair’ symbol, instead of the ‘flower bud’. “Other parties within the UPFA, such as the Communist Party and the Sama Samaja Party too, want to safeguard their identities. As such, initial agreement has been reached to contest under a common symbol,” he claimed.
He added that the SLFP was currently in discussions with the SLPP to work out a candidate quota when contesting upcoming elections.
This is the second occasion Prof. Piyadasa has been asked by the President, to take over a senior position of the SLFP. He served a stint as its Acting General Secretary last year. “I’m not a politician. The President asked me to take over as Party General Secretary, at a moment of grave crisis within the party. I was able to successfully steer the party through that crisis and hand it over to a new General Secretary. Now, with the President choosing to remain neutral at this Presidential Election, I have again been asked to take over as Acting Chairman by the President. I am confident I can meet this challenge as well,” he said.
Prof. Piyadasa revealed that, once the Presidential Election is concluded, former President Sirisena would again take over as SLFP Chairman. “The President has already stated that he intends to stay in politics. So, he will take over as party chair and I will function as a Senior Vice President of the party,” he revealed.