Hundred
metres: Who's running with whom?
"Thaaththa," Bindu Udagedera asked, "what is all
this fuss about a hundred metres? Is Susanthika running again?"
"No, no, Bindu," Bindu's father Percy said, "it is
about this law which bans construction within a hundred metres from
the sea…"
"So,
what is all the fuss about it?" Bindu wanted to know.
"Satellite is saying it will be implemented to the letter…"
Percy explained.
"She has said she will do many things…" Bindu observed,
"that doesn't necessarily mean she will do it…"
"But," Percy said, "the Greens are saying it is a
foolish rule to implement…"
"Why is that, thaaththa?"
"They
are asking whether the waves from the sea will stop at a ninety-nine
metres, if there is another tsunami…"
"But that is not the only problem, thaaththa…" Bindu
said.
"Why
do you say that?" Percy wanted to know.
"In the North and East, the limit will be three hundred metres,
no less…"
"Who says so?" Percy asked.
"Velu has decided that and that will be final, I suppose…"
Bindu observed.
"I wonder what the Reds think about all this…" Percy
said.
"I
don't think they care much if it is a hundred metres or less as
long as they can criticise the Blues, the Greens, the Tigers and
the Norwegians and get some publicity for themselves and get a few
votes more in the process…" Bindu observed.
"But there is someone who feels very strongly about the hundred
metres…" Percy said.
"Who is that, thaaththa?" Bindu wanted to know.
"The Crown Prince never loses an opportunity to criticise the
hundred metre rule saying it is stupid…"
"He
never called Velu's three hundred metre rule stupid, did he?"
"No he didn't", Percy said, "but he was quite convinced
about the hundred metres itself…"
"That is probably because he thought it was the Pee Em's idea…"
"Well, what he said was that he didn't care whose idea it was,
but that it was stupid…" Percy recalled.
"But now it is Satellite's idea as well…" Bindu
said.
"So,"
Percy said, "this is a historic event in local politics…"
"The hundred metres?" Bindu was puzzled, "how is
that, thaaththa?"
"Why, Bindu, on the one hand we have Crown Prince agreeing
with what the Greens are saying…"
"That is nothing new, thaaththa," Bindu said, "that
has been happening since the Kalaweva by-election in the early seventies
when Junius used him cleverly to split the blues…"
"But
there is an even more important event…" Percy persisted.
"What is that, thaaththa?"
"Why, it means that Satellite agrees with what the Pee Em says
rather than with what her brother says…"
"And all this while we were thinking that she would promote
the brother over the Pee Em when it comes to selecting the next
Blue leader…" Bindu said.
"I am not so sure about that, Bindu…" Percy declared.
"Why
do you say that, thaaththa?"
"I don't think Satellite is keen on promoting either her brother
or the Pee Em as the next leader," Percy said, "she is
just keen on promoting herself…"
"And," Bindu observed, "she will go the extra mile
to do that, not just a hundred metres…"
Percy didn't disagree. |
