‘Masses united to protect democracy’

The majority of the country got together unprecedentedly to protect parliamentary democracy and the country's Constitution; Public Enterprise, Kandyan Heritage and Kandy Development Minister Lakshman Kiriella said.

All the communities in Sri Lanka; Sinhalese, Tamils, and Muslims; stood together with the United National Party (UNP) when the issue arose. The country witnessed this after many years, the minister said, adding that it was questioned whether the minority parties would act otherwise, but all acted positively.

He was speaking at a UNP meeting held at Nilagama in Digana, on Sunday. The event was organised by Chief Kundasale UNP Organiser and former Provincial Councillor R.G. Samaranayake.

The chief organiser said that Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe won the election during the reign of President Chandrika Kumarathunga Bandaranaike, but she did not say that he would not be appointed the Prime Minister. She had refused to appoint S.B. Dissanayake as a minister, but she changed her decision later.

Samaranayake said that President Maithripala Sirisena was elected the President as a non-political party member; but later, he took over the leadership of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) soon after he won the election.

He added that Cabinet had considered 35,000 incidents of political vengeance, but the President had rejected those incidents and said he wanted to appoint a committee on it.

Minister Kiriella said that the government attempted to increase Samurdhi concessions, but the President did not allow it. He further said that President Sirisena did not permit the government to enforce laws to bring investments to the country as well.

Minister Kiriella added that President Maithripala Sirisena was not given the mandate to appoint MP Mahinda Rajapaksa as the Prime Minister.