UPFA
mystery manifesto came from President's Office
By Harinda Vidanage
The mysterious second manifesto was drafted at the President's House
without the consent of the JVP and given for printing by a coordinator
at the President's Office, SLFP sources said yesterday.
The
coordinator, K. A. Seneviratne gave the printing to at least three
sub contractors but used his own name as the printer, they said.
The sources said a top official at the Presidential Secretariat
was in charge of revising the March 11 manifesto while its distribution
was handled by SLFP headquarters officials M. Ariyasena, assisted
by the party's media and information unit.
Several
UPFA organizers confirmed that they received copies of this second
manifesto. Despite this, the SLFP and the JVP issued a joint statement
denying the existence of a It is also noteworthy that an alarming
28% of the Sri Lankan voters think that there will be vote rigging
and intimidation at this year's elections as compared to the 57%
who think it will be a free and fair election.
With
regard to the peace process, the results show that while the majority
of 49% of those in the South think that whichever government comes
to office should continue with the same ceasefire agreement, 35%
think it should be re-negotiated and changed.
A somewhat
different view is seen in the NE, with 37% thinking that it should
be re-negotiated as compared to the 33% who think the same agreement
should be continued. The fieldwork for this final wave was conducted
during March 21-March 26. The results should indicate the swing
in the vote just 6 days prior to the elections. |