• Sri Lanka’s letter of intent to IMF signed by RW on 28 May outlines some new policies for adoption
• New rent tax replaces Property Tax; targets owner-occupied and vacant residential properties
• VAT on digital services, exemptions to be lifted from service exports; adverse impact on public, biz
• IMF says ready to revisit deal under new govt.; hit on RW Govt., win for Opposition parties’ stance
• Jaishankar to arrive on Thursday; discussion on delayed Indian projects, preparation for Modi visit
• Chaos over referendum talk, constitutional ‘loophole’ on Prez term; Govt. to amend confirming 5 years
• RW camp opens second ‘election’ office in Colombo 4; Manusha, Sagala and SLPP ministers to occupy
• RW passes Rs. 1,200 m to 19 SJB MPs under Decentralised Budget; Rs. 170 m for four more SJBers
• SJB MPs yet to cross over despite perks; SLPPers complain to MR, Basil over lack of funds for them
• SLPP faces conundrum over disciplinary action against dissidents; Dhammika patiently watches SLPP
• Yapa-Lanza-SLFP alliance gets 19 MPs’ support at maiden rally; next rally in Wellawaya on 29 June
• RW alliance in limbo over SLPP’s stance; RW asked to push SLPP to conduct a separate campaign
• SJB, JVP/NPP compete for TNA support in the north; Sajith promises 13A, NPP/JVP a new constitution
• Sarvajana Balaya to hold rally on Tuesday in Nugegoda; new parties, faces expected to join meeting

The Ranil Wickremesinghe Government was in a jubilant mood last week with what it believed to be great achievements that would secure President Wickremesinghe’s victory at the upcoming Presidential Election. 

The first was the President’s visit to India to attend Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s swearing-in ceremony, where photographs of Wickremesinghe standing and seated right next to Modi were being widely shared in the media by the President’s Media Division (PMD) in a bid to indicate the strong ties between Sri Lanka and India. 

The second achievement was the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) last Wednesday (12) completing the second review under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) with Sri Lanka that allowed the authorities to draw about $ 336 million. This has brought the total IMF financial support disbursed so far to Special Drawing Rights (SDR) 762 million (about $ 1 billion).

However, it is the latest deal reached with the IMF resulting in Executive Board approval that should be cause for much concern for Wickremesinghe and his band of merry men gearing for the Presidential Election.

Sri Lanka’s letter of intent to IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva on 28 May signed by President Wickremesinghe and Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) Governor Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe has outlined the policies Sri Lanka will be implementing over the coming months, which have been presented in the Memorandum of Economic and Financial Policies (MEFP) attached with the letter.

Be that as it may, some of the policies that the Wickremesinghe Government has undertaken to implement in the coming months, especially the new revised taxes, will undoubtedly alienate the Wickremesinghe camp from the country’s middle-class population.

Under Attachment 1 of the MEFP, the section on ‘Advancing Revenue-Based Fiscal Consolidation and Reforms to Social Safety Nets, Fiscal Institutions, and State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs),’ the Government has undertaken to introduce a new rent tax in lieu of the earlier proposed Property Tax, while also proposing a Value-Added Tax  (VAT) on digital services and removing exemptions on service exports. 

“We are planning to (i) introduce an imputed rental income tax (0.15 percent of GDP), (ii) introduce the VAT tax at a rate of 18 percent of GDP on items currently subject to the Special Commodity Levy (which will be removed), and on the supply of digital services (0.08 percent of GDP), (iii) remove the CIT exemption on the export of services (0.04 percent of GDP), and (iv) increase the CIT rate on betting and gaming, tobacco and liquor industries from 40 to 45 percent (0.08 percent of GDP). In addition, we expect to raise about 0.8 percent of GDP from the lifting of import restrictions on motor vehicles. We also plan to increase the stamp duties on lease contracts from 0.1 to 0.2 percent (0.03 percent of GDP) which would lower transfers to Provincial Councils and thus lower spending. If the yield from these measures does not fully materialise, we commit to adopt additional measures to compensate for the shortfall,” the statement reads.

The implementation of these measures will not only have a severe impact on businesses but also on the general public at large. This leaves one to wonder whether the Ministers of the Cabinet, who had obviously approved this document, had actually read and understood the fine print and its impact on their political futures as well.

New rent tax

Section 9 in the above-mentioned section (MEFP) explains the new rent tax. It states: “We will promptly initiate preparatory work to introduce an imputed rental income tax, though the expected gains would only fully materialise in 2026. The introduction of the Property Tax and the Gift and Inheritance Tax by 2025 encountered delays, due to constitutional restrictions on sharing revenues between the Central and Local Authorities and the lack of adequate information on property values. Given these constraints, we will introduce an imputed rental income tax on owner-occupied and vacant residential properties before the beginning of the tax year on 1 April 2025. An exemption threshold and a graduated tax rate schedule would make this tax highly progressive. The full revenue yield from this tax is estimated at 0.4 percent and would materialise in 2026 (with a partial yield of 0.15 percent in 2025). This yield would still fall short by 1 percent of GDP relative to the expected yield of 1.2 percent of GDP from the property tax envisaged for 2025 onwards. The shortfall is compensated by the new revenue measures with a yield of 0.7 percent of GDP and the revenue overperformance from 2023 (0.2 percent of GDP). We will continue to explore options to implement a tax on property in the medium-term. To ensure that the imputed rental income tax is fully operational by 2026, we will undertake the following measures:

“*Establish the first database on estimated current market values by end-December 2024 with immediate efforts to (i) digitise the valuation records held by the Government Valuation Department, starting with Municipal Councils, finalising this effort by end-2025, (ii) collect information from a representative sample of 5,000 standard properties that includes key variables, including annual values, latest assessment date, and property type, of all properties in all Municipal Councils by August 2024 (new Structural Benchmark). This would help determine the capital values of these properties.

“*Introduce a provisional nationwide digital Sales Price and Rents Register (SPRR) by August 2024. We will ensure that the SPRR is fully established and operational by end-March 2025 and that it is accessible by the IRD, the Valuation Department, the Land Registry, and the general public (new structural benchmark). A fully operational digital SPRR would be the key resource for the assessment of property values and hence the basis for several taxes, including imputed rental income taxation, capital gains taxation, stamp duties, and local recurrent property taxes. 

“*Improve data-sharing among relevant Government entities. We have introduced a gazette notification on 21 March 2024, under the IRA, requiring the Registrar General’s Department to share all real estate sales information with the IRD. We will also amend the Notaries Act by April 2025 to ensure comprehensive information on each notarised real property contract (which will include the valuation roll, the cadastral number, and a unique tax ID) is automatically fed into the digital SPRR.”

It does not take a genius to figure out that an “imputed rental income tax on owner-occupied and vacant residential properties” would further burden the middle class, which constitutes a majority of the floating vote base at present.

Opposition gain

Interestingly, the IMF’s indication of willingness to adjust the programme to accommodate upcoming elections and the willingness to renegotiate the programme in the event of a regime change is a further hit on the Wickremesinghe Government, which has been asked by the parliamentary Opposition continuously to renegotiate with the IMF some of the clauses that have placed many burdens on the Sri Lankan masses.

IMF Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka Peter Breuer, who stated that the IMF fully respected the democratic process and was willing to adapt its schedule to align with the elections, when asked if a new government could adjust the programme and reduce taxes post-elections, responded that the IMF was willing to listen to alternative proposals from political parties – provided that they adhered to the benchmarks set in the bailout deal.

“Sri Lanka has made good progress in terms of getting the recovery going, but the country really is not out of the woods yet,” he noted, while reiterating that the IMF was willing to listen to different views on how the programme objectives could be reached.

Breuer’s words therefore give an edge to the main Opposition Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB), which has vowed to renegotiate Sri Lanka’s deal with the IMF under a future SJB government. SJB’s financial lead Dr. Harsha de Silva has taken the lead in preparing for renegotiating terms with the IMF.

Jaishankar inbound

Prior to the IMF bombshell, President Wickremesinghe was in India this past week attending the inauguration of Prime Minister Modi. While the ceremonies took up the 9th, the President and the Indian Government were immediately down to work on the 10th, with discussions between the President and India’s Minister of External Affairs S. Jaishankar on the ongoing projects between India and Sri Lanka. 

During interactions with Modi the previous night at the official State dinner, Wickremesinghe had extended an invitation to the Prime Minister to visit Sri Lanka in the coming months to launch several joint projects. 

Jaishankar is now expected to visit Sri Lanka on Thursday (20), when the President will hold discussions with him on the continuing delay in some of the key Indian-funded projects in Sri Lanka and preparations for the Prime Minister’s pending visit. With a host of projects in the pipeline – including in the energy sector, development of Trincomalee, and economic integration with India – both sides will certainly be racing against the clock to prepare for the visit. 

Referendum googly

Across the Palk Straits in Sri Lanka, the holding of elections has become a much-discussed topic, with many theories making the rounds on which election will be held first as well as the latest issues to be included in discussions – extending the term of the President and Parliament through a referendum and the constitutional ‘loophole’ that could allow the President to hold office for six years instead of five.

While the holding of a referendum to extend the terms of the President and Parliament has been largely shot down by civil society, certain sections in the political scene don’t seem to be prepared to discard this option without discussion.

President Wickremesinghe meanwhile continues to maintain that the Presidential Election will be held at the scheduled time. However, it is learnt that a group of Members of Parliament (MPs), mostly representing the Government side, had recently discussed the possibility of supporting a move to hold a referendum to extend the terms, since it would enable incumbent MPs to also receive more time to serve as legislators. 

On the other hand, political circles have been awash with rumours of a potential move to delay the Presidential Election via a ‘loophole’ in the Constitution. With questions raised over Article 83(b) in the 19th Amendment, the Government has found itself being forced to continually assure the public that no moves are underway to postpone the election. In fact, highly placed sources have now indicated that discussions are underway on presenting a fresh amendment to Parliament which ensures the presidential term cannot exceed five years. 

Be that as it may, the ongoing confusion over the holding of elections and President Wickremesinghe’s silence on whether he will contest the upcoming Presidential Election have left many political parties and individuals looking at supporting him through a broad political alliance in the lurch.

Opposition groups have been using this confusion to attack the Government, while they have also found themselves facing several drawn-out issues within their own camps as a result. With the uncertainty over elections being held, several financial backers of Opposition groups have informed their political circles that they will be refraining from supplying any further financial support until it is clear an election is going to be held.

End of the UNP

Amidst talk of delaying the holding of polls, Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) Leader, former President Mahinda Rajapaksa (MR) has predicted the end of the United National Party (UNP).

Addressing a meeting in Badulla, MR noted that there was no constitutional way to delay the holding of elections and that if President Wickremesinghe allowed for such a move, it would herald the end of the UNP.

MR also noted that the SLPP had managed to prevail despite defections and that the people had great hope in the party. “We are stronger now than earlier. We must hold elections,” he noted.

On the issue of the SLPP’s presidential candidate, the Party Leader further noted that an announcement on the candidate would be made at the right time.

Issue with the SLPP

While MR issued a warning to President Wickremesinghe, the President and his loyalists continue to wait for crossovers from the SJB, which, according to the Wickremesinghe group, are expected to take place during the vote on the proposed Economic Transformation Bill in Parliament. However, some SJBers have expressed concerns over the possibility of the SLPP also joining with Wickremesinghe for the Presidential Election. 

Several senior SJB MPs, who publicly critique the actions and policies of the Rajapaksas while holding them accountable for the economic crisis faced by the country, have expressed concerns to their ‘handlers’ from the President’s side that they will not be able to sit on the same stage with the Rajapaksas during an election campaign. 

Yapa-Lanza concerns 

Similar sentiments have been expressed by the SLPP dissidents’ group led by Anura Priyadarshana Yapa and Nimal Lanza. The Yapa-Lanza group has formed a broad political alliance together with the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) and has expressed its intentions of supporting President Wickremesinghe at the Presidential Election. 

However, the Yapa-Lanza group as well as the SLFP have expressed concerns over the Rajapaksas and the SLPP extending support to the President during the campaign. They maintain that having the Rajapaksas on stage with the broad alliance and Wickremesinghe will not bode well for their political futures.

Yapa, Lanza, and members of the SLFP have already expressed their displeasure over SLPP theoretician Basil Rajapaksa’s participation at the weekly meeting held by the pro-Wickremesinghe group to discuss matters related to the Presidential Election and Wickremesinghe’s campaign. 

It is learnt that the Yapa-Lanza group had even proposed that the SLPP carry out its own campaign in support of Wickremesinghe, if the party decides to support the President, without getting on stage with the broad political alliance led by them and the SLFP. Wickremesinghe, in usual fashion, has refrained from committing to the request.

RW’s calculation 

However, there have been many questions on the numbers pulled out by President Wickremesinghe and his loyalists with regard to the SJB MPs who are expected to cross over to the Government side and extend support to the President at the impending Presidential Election. The number of crossovers expected from the SJB ranges between 20 and 25, according to calculations by Wickremesinghe loyalists. 

A further inquiry into the matter has revealed that the numbers have been calculated in line with the monies allocated by the Government for SJB MPs for various development programmes in their constituencies. This is apart from the liquor licences that are continuously being issued to Opposition MPs. 

It is learnt that a sum of approximately Rs. 1,200 million has so far been allocated by the Government to be shared among 19 SJB MPs for development work in their areas. It is also learnt that another Rs. 170 million has been earmarked to be distributed among four more SJB MPs. These funds, released under the 2024 Decentralised Budget, have been allocated for projects that have been proposed by relevant District Development Committees as well as for proposals submitted by respective MPs. The funds for the projects proposed by the SJB MPs have been released with the direct approval of President Wickremesinghe. 

The President’s Secretary meanwhile has informed the MPs who have received or are receiving funds under the 2024 Decentralised Budget that the monies should be used in line with the financial circulars issued by the Finance Ministry, such as MF/02/2023 on 29 December 2023. 

The funds have to also be utilised and accounted for before 31 July this year. 

Among the SJB MPs who have received funds under the President’s special programme are Kavinda Jayawardana (Rs. 69 million), Ajith Mannapperuma (Rs. 49.9 million), Dilip Wedaarachchi (Rs. 48.2 million), Faizal Cassim (Rs. 100 million), Gayantha Karunathilaka (Rs. 51 million), H.M.M. Harees (Rs. 100 million), Dr. Harsha de Silva (Rs. 50.2 million), Hector Appuhamy (Rs. 18 million), Ishak Rahuman (Rs. 100 million), J.C. Alawathuwala (Rs. 61.3 million), Sujith Sanjaya Perera (Rs. 50 million), Kins Nelson (Rs. 50 million), Patali Champika Ranawaka (Rs. 49.8 million), Dr. Rajitha Senaratne (Rs. 51.2 million), Rohini Wijeratne Kavirathna (Rs. 62.8 million), Seyed Ali Zahir Moulana (Rs. 100 million), M. Velu Kumar (Rs. 60.2 million), W.H.M. Dharmasena (Rs. 50 million), and Rishad Bathiudeen (Rs. 84.4 million). These names are in the list of fund recipients as of a week ago. 

SLPPers displeased 

Be that as it may, Wickremesinghe’s move to make special allocations for a selected group of SJB MPs has irked SLPP MPs, who claim that most of them are yet to receive funds sought for development work in their areas. Several SLPPers, upon learning of the number of SJBers who have received funds under the Decentralised Budget, have expressed their displeasure to SLPP Leader MR and Basil. 

Basil, it is learnt, had asked the MPs to remain calm since he had already raised the issue with the President by explaining the need for the ruling SLPPers to be made part of all development programmes of the Government. 

It is also learnt that MR had informed the disgruntled MPs that President Wickremesinghe, who has sought the party’s support for the Presidential Election, would have to address the demands of the SLPPers as much as Opposition legislators. 

Sidelining RW loyalists

The SLPP meanwhile continues to sideline its members holding portfolios in the Government who are seen as supporters of President Wickremesinghe.

A recent public meeting of the SLPP in the Kalawewa electorate in Anuradhapura saw State Minister Shehan Semasinghe, who is from the constituency, not being included in it. The meeting was announced as the SLPP’s inaugural meeting of a series of meetings to be held at electoral level headed by the party’s National Organiser Namal Rajapaksa.

However, one of the SLPP’s most recent meetings in Rattota in the Matale District saw the absence of senior SLPPer Janaka Bandara Tennakoon and his son, State Minister Premitha Bandara Tennakoon. The Rattota meeting had been organised by State Minister Rohana Dissanayake.

Another political office

Meanwhile, another political office of President Wickremesinghe was opened last week on Lauries Lane in Colombo 4. This building is expected to serve as Wickremesinghe’s key campaign office, with some sections of the media campaign also to be carried out of its offices. 

This is the second political office that has been opened in Wickremesinghe’s name. The President has clearly issued directives that the new offices being opened can only be called political offices without any mention of elections. The first such office, prepared by UNP Chairman Wajira Abeywardena, was opened on Flower Road in Colombo 7.

The opening of the latest political office was not attended by Wickremesinghe since he was in India attending Premier Modi’s swearing-in ceremony. Therefore, the opening of the latest political office was attended by several ministers like senior SLPP Minister Prasanna Ranatunga and Manusha Nanayakkara.

It is learnt that the new office building in Colombo 4 is undergoing last-minute renovation work and that the floors have already been assigned for groups that are supporting Wickremesinghe at the Presidential Election.

Nanayakkara, who is heading the media campaign for Wickremesinghe, and the lead officer in the media team (a senior official of the Sirasa media network who had contested the last Parliamentary Elections under the SLPP) will operate out of two floors. Another floor has been allocated to SLPP ministers led by Ranatunga, who are currently operating out of an office on Malalasekera Mawatha in Colombo 7. President’s Chief of Staff Sagala Ratnayaka’s team has also been allocated a floor at this new office.

It is also learnt that another office for Wickremesinghe is to be set up at another location in Colombo.

Basil-Champika meet 

Meanwhile, news of a key critic of the Rajapaksas, dissident SJB MP and United Republic Front (URF) Leader Patali Champika Ranawaka recently meeting with the SLPP’s MR and Basil for what seems like a secret discussion was widely shared in the media. 

The meeting between Ranawaka and the Rajapaksas was supposed to have been kept secret until several individuals from the SLPP slowly leaked it to certain sections of the media. One of the key reasons for these SLPPers to release the relevant piece of information was their displeasure over Ranawaka’s actions, given his continuous attacks on the Rajapaksa camp and the SLPP. 

However, it is learnt that during the meeting, Ranawaka had noted that he did not have any personal animosity towards the Rajapaksas but only took up policy issues. 

Ranawaka’s party meanwhile dismissed any moves between the URF and SLPP to form an alliance. URF General Secretary Bandula Chandrasekara, while denying the meeting, has said that the party has drafted a comprehensive programme to address the issues faced by the country and that it has been handed over to the UNP and SJB. 

Chandrasekara has further stated that the SLPP is also responsible for the current crisis as much as the Rajapaksa political family. 

The Rajapaksas and the SLPP have so far not denied meeting Ranawaka.

Dhammika’s patience 

Amidst all these political moves, businessman-turned-politician Dhammika Perera, who is among the frontrunners to become the SLPP’s presidential candidate in the event the party decides to field its own candidate, has opted to remain silent while continuing with the billion-rupee DP Education programme in all districts in the country. 

Perera, who has been displeased over the SLPP’s delay in reaching a final decision on the party’s stance on the impending Presidential Election, has told several confidantes that he will remain patient for the time being since there is a two-month period for the announcement of the Presidential Election. 

However, Perera has further noted that if he is not going to be named the candidate of the SLPP at the Presidential Election, he will remain neutral at the polls without extending support physically or financially to any candidate or party. 

Disciplinary conundrum 

The SLPP, which has initiated disciplinary action against some of its errant MPs, is faced with some difficulty in initiating action against all MPs who have defected from the party. The party says that it does not have the capacity to initiate disciplinary action against most of its MPs who have joined other parties, as per agreements reached during the last Parliamentary Election in 2020. 

Justice Minister Dr. Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe and several other SLPP-elected MPs have now joined other political parties such as the SLFP and the SJB or are engaging in these parties’ affairs. However, some of the errant MPs are members of other political parties that had joined the SLPP-led alliance to contest elections in 2020. Therefore, the SLPP is unable to act against SLPP MPs who represent other political parties upon their defection from the SLPP-led alliance. 

However, the case with regard to Rajapakshe is different since he had accepted direct membership of the SLPP. 

So far, around 40 SLPP MPs have defected from the party and joined the Opposition. 

New alliance 

Meanwhile, the new alliance led by the Yapa-Lanza SLPP dissidents’ group and the SLFP (pro-Nimal Siripala de Silva faction) held its maiden rally last week in Ambalantota with the participation of a considerable number of ministers, state ministers, and MPs. 

The rally was attended by 19 MPs in total. They were Nimal Siripala de Silva, Mahinda Amaraweera, Duminda Dissanayake, Susil Premajayantha, John Seneviratne, Yapa, Lanza, Lasantha Alagiyawanna, Nalin Fernando, Jagath Pushpakumara, the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress’s (SLMC) A.H. Musharaf, Ali Sabri Raheem, Premnath C. Dolawatte, Suren Raghavan, Chamara Sampath Dasanayake, Piyankara Jayaratne, Sudath Manjula, Jagath Priyankara, and Udayakantha Gunathilaka. 

Former MPs Weerakumara Dissanayake and Tharanath Basnayake, former provincial Chief Minister Isura Devapriya, and former Provincial Councillors Pasanda Yapa Abeywardena, Gunasiri Jayanath, and Ananda Sarath had also attended the rally.

The new alliance is now planning a second rally, scheduled to be held in Wellawaya on 29 June.

Expanding alliance

Following the new alliance’s Ambalantota rally, several more political parties and politicians have expressed interest in joining it. 

It is learnt that the new alliance members had held a discussion on expanding it at the Monarch Imperial Hotel in Thalawathugoda last Tuesday (11). The meeting had been attended by several MPs representing the Opposition as well as the Government, who had expressed interest in joining the alliance as individuals in the event their parties did not join it. 

Another group to SJB

Another group of SLPP dissidents is currently in negotiations with the SJB to form an alliance targeting the Presidential Election.

This group of SLPP dissidents includes the remaining MPs of the Freedom People’s Congress (FPC) in the group led by Dullas Alahapperuma. A group led by Prof. G.L. Peiris and Dr. Nalaka Godahewa that was earlier part of the FPC has already joined the SJB, as have former General Secretary of the SLFP Dayasiri Jayasekara (who has formed the Humane People’s Alliance) and former Sports Minister Roshan Ranasinghe (who has already formed an anti-corruption collective).

Sajith for 13A 

Meanwhile, Opposition and SJB Leader Sajith Premadasa has assured the people of the north that he will implement the 13th Amendment to the Constitution under an SJB government. 

The SJB Leader made this statement while participating in the donation of a smart classroom to Bharathipuram Maha Vidyalayam, Kilinochchi, under the ‘Sakwala’ programme. 

Criticising various leaders for being afraid to discuss the 13th Amendment, Premadasa has said that he will implement the 13th Amendment and will not resort to making mere political statements. 

The National Movement for Social Justice (NMSJ) led by former Speaker Karu Jayasuriya has an ongoing campaign calling on political parties to fully implement the 13th Amendment and to make a commitment to implement the piece of legislation prior to elections.

Challenging 13A

However, Premadasa’s statement on the 13th Amendment has been met with opposition from ultra-nationalists.

The Pivithuru Hela Urumaya (PHU) said that it was ready to extend its support to Opposition Leader Premadasa if the SJB was willing to conduct a comprehensive study on the impacts of the implementation of the 13th Amendment.

Responding to Premadasa’s statement, PHU Leader MP Udaya Gammanpila highlighted the impacts and challenges that could be faced due to the full implementation of the 13th Amendment. “Only those who have no understanding of the 13th Amendment are proposing to implement it in its entirety,” Gammanpila has noted, adding that Premadasa would not have promised full implementation of the amendment if he had been aware of the ground situation in Sri Lanka as well as developments in various parts of the world.

Competing for the TNA

Also, Premadasa, who was recently given the cold shoulder by the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), last week visited the TNA Head Office in Jaffna when he had visited the region for the ‘Sakwala’ programme. He spent several days in the Northern Province last week as part of his ‘Sakwala’ programme for schools.

Premadasa’s meeting with the TNA was promoted by the pro-SJB media as a rare meeting where the TNA had invited the SJB Leader to its office for talks. The news was being pushed to counter a recent negative statement made by the TNA about Premadasa and the SJB. TNA MP M.A. Sumanthiran recently claimed that the SJB was dreaming if it thought the TNA would extend support to Premadasa at the Presidential Election.

A group of TNA members had invited Premadasa to the TNA office in Jaffna. Sumanthiran, Mavai Senathirajah, and several other senior members of the TNA had welcomed the SJB Leader to their Jaffna office and held a discussion on the situation in the Northern Province and the latest political situation. 

Meanwhile, Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP)-led National People’s Power (NPP) Leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake (AKD) also met with leaders of the TNA in Jaffna last week.

The discussion was attended by Sumanthiran and Senathirajah from the TNA side.

New constitution

The JVP/NPP meanwhile also spoke of the party’s solution to the national issue by stating that the JVP/NPP would introduce a new constitution to provide a permanent solution to the national issue.

JVP/NPP MP Vijitha Herath has noted that the existing Constitution was outdated at present and that there was a necessity for a new constitution that would address national issues permanently. 

Top cops for JVP/NPP 

The JVP/NPP, which has included a large number of organisations under its support base, last week included yet another one. The newest organisation to extend support to the JVP/NPP is the Retired Police Officers’ Collective. 

The collective includes several former senior investigators of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), such as former SDIG of the CID Ravi Seneviratne and former Director of the department SSP Shani Abeysekara. 

JVP/NPP Leader AKD claimed that there had been much pressure on Seneviratne and Abeysekara by the Government and Opposition not to join the NPP but that they had taken a stand. “Why are these threats being made? Seneviratne and Abeysekara are well aware of the behaviour of both sides [Government and Opposition]. That is the reason why these threats and appeals are made. However, despite these pressures, they have bravely come forward today to address the people,” he said.

Objecting officers

However, in response to the stance taken by Seneviratne and Abeysekara, a group of former senior Police officers came out criticising the move by some retired Police personnel to openly support a political party.

Former Inspector General of Police (IGP) Chandra Fernando took the lead in criticising the involvement of retired senior Police officers in politics. However, it is interesting to note that Fernando has been seen on many occasions with senior SLPPers, with the latest instance being his being part of a welcome group that arrived at the Bandaranaike International Airport in Katunayake to receive Basil Rajapaksa when he returned to Sri Lanka from the US earlier this year. 

AKD’s confidence

Meanwhile, JVP/NPP Leader AKD has claimed that his party will win between 120 and 130 seats at Parliamentary Elections that will be held once Parliament is dissolved after the Presidential Election.

He has told a public rally for youth in Tangalle that a large number of youth from among the common people would get elected to Parliament at the next Parliamentary Elections.

AKD has added that the Provincial Councils and Local Government bodies are also in need of young representatives in order to cast away the outdated and corrupt system.

Talk of another debate 

The SJB has meanwhile expressed its preparedness to hold both debates planned between it and the JVP/NPP at any time, after the 6 June debate between the two Party Leaders resulted in only the JVP/NPP Leader attending the debate organised by the State-owned ITN channel, with the SJB Leader stating at the last minute that he will not be attending until the debate between the Economic Committees of the two parties is held. 

The SJB’s Nalin Bandara Jayamaha, who was tasked with coordinating the debates with the JVP/NPP, has claimed that the latter is using various tactics to suppress the debates between the Party Leaders and Economic Committees. 

“They played a trick on 6 June by participating in a programme we hadn’t agreed to. We’ve been insisting that these debates should occur on open platforms with all media institutions present and moderated by an independent party. 

“Both the SJB and NPP should mutually decide on the dates for both debates. It is only after finalising these arrangements that we can hold the debates. The NPP played a trick and now claims it won’t discuss any further debates. Our response to it is that we are ready for any debate once proper arrangements have been made,” he noted. 

Meanwhile, Premadasa has also expressed preparedness to participate in another debate with the JVP/NPP Leader, which he says need to be properly organised.

The JVP/NPP however maintains that the SJB is only playing politics with talk of a debate, since it did not show up for the debate between the Party Leaders. 

SJB’s complaint

The SJB meanwhile has also filed a complaint with the CID regarding a fake letter claiming that Party Leader Premadasa had accepted an invitation to a debate hosted by ITN. The document had been shared on social media.

Legal counsel for the SJB has said that the party hopes for a fair investigation into the matter as a similar complaint has been lodged by the party on 26 April.

Sarvajana rally

Meanwhile, the Sarvajana Balaya alliance consisting of pro-nationalist forces is geared to hold its first public rally on Tuesday (18) in Nugegoda.

Following the launch of the alliance several weeks back, there have been several discussions with more political parties and individuals to obtain their support for the Sarvajana Balaya. It is learnt that several new members of the alliance are expected to attend the rally this week.