UNP MP Prabha Ganeshan on Sunday warned Eastern Province Tamils to throw their weight behind the SLFP-led UPFA at the Sept. 8 elections to the Eastern Provincial Council or face the consequences.
UNP MP Prabha Ganeshan on Sunday warned Eastern Province Tamils to throw their weight behind the SLFP-led UPFA at the Sept. 8 elections to the Eastern Provincial Council or face the consequences.
The Colombo District MP was addressing a UPFA media briefing at the Mahaweli Centre.
Ganeshan, who contested the last General Election in April 2010 on the UNP ticket, switched his allegiance to President Mahinda Rajapaksa subsequently.
MP Ganeshan said that Tamil voters should vote for Tamil candidates contesting Digamadulla, Batticaloa and Trincomalee Districts on the UPFA ticket to ensure adequate representation for the community. The MP emphasized the pivotal importance of strengthening the Tamil voice within the UPFA group at the Eastern PC.
Commenting on the education sector, the MP said that a strong Tamil representation in the Eastern PC would be necessary to improve Tamil schools. Acknowledging that some of their grievances hadn’t been addressed so far, MP Ganeshan expressed confidence that they would be solved.
Prabha Ganeshan was the only Tamil to be elected from Colombo on the UNP ticket. His brother Mano contested from Kandy also on the UNP ticket, though he failed to secure a place.
MP Ganeshan launched a scathing attack on those who still pursued eelam project in spite of the conclusion of the conflict in May 2009. He accused a section of Tamil speaking politicians of promoting separatism at the expense of post-war national reconciliation. They enjoyed giving statements detrimental to ongoing reconciliation efforts, the MP said. He accused a section of the media of giving space to those working against national unity.
Fisheries Minister Dr. Rajitha Senaratne, who chaired the briefing, said that those promoting separatist sentiments would be rejected by voters. The former UNP Minister said that the SLFP and the UNP were open to people from all communities.
Commenting on the Eastern Provincial Council election, the minister said that the TNA hadn’t been able to reach an understanding with the SLMC. The UPFA constituent, SLMC wouldn’t throw its weight behind the TNA at the Eastern PC, the Kalutara District MP said.
The minister said that the UPFA was in the process of reorganizing the Eastern Province. The government had spent Rs. 53 bn for post-war recovery process in the Eastern Province; he said emphasizing that no previous government allocated such a huge amount of funds for the province. The minister also mentioned the ongoing development projects in the Northern region.
(Island)