{"id":42273,"date":"2015-07-21T19:44:52","date_gmt":"2015-07-21T23:44:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/?p=42273"},"modified":"2015-07-21T19:47:48","modified_gmt":"2015-07-21T23:47:48","slug":"personal-popularity-of-mahinda-rajapaksa-hs-become-the-sole-selling-point-of-upfa-campaign-in-polls","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/?p=42273","title":{"rendered":"Personal Popularity of Mahinda Rajapaksa has Become the Sole “Selling Point” of UPFA Campaign in Polls"},"content":{"rendered":"

By<\/p>\n

Rasika Jayakody <\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cYou sit at the board and suddenly your heart leaps. Your hand trembles to pick up the piece and move it. But what chess teaches you is that you must sit there calmly and think about whether it’s really a good idea and whether there are other, better ideas.\u201d<\/em>…………Stanley Kubrick<\/strong><\/p>\n

T<\/strong>he UPFA\u2019s inaugural rally in Anuradhapura made one thing very obvious. That is, former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, his close allies and campaign managers are yet to recover from the aftershock of Rajapaksa\u2019s defeat at the Presidential election in January.<\/p>\n

The rally held in Anuradhapura in the presence of a large crowd was a mere extension of Rajapaksa\u2019s extravagant election campaign in January. Thousands of supporters were transported in buses from every part of the country and they were incentivized by food and funding through respective electorate organizers. More than 100 ex-Parliamentarians of the UPFA, including the Opposition Leader and the General Secretaries of the UPFA and the SLFP, attended the rally to show their support to Rajapaksa.<\/p>\n

Two large cutouts of the former President- which were heavily used during the Presidential election campaign \u2013 had been placed alongside the stage to demonstrate \u201clarger than life\u201d personality of Rajapaksa. The organizers of the rally had little or no knowledge of the fact that Rajapaksa\u2019s \u201cin-your-face\u201d propaganda campaign was disadvantageous to him in January as it earned the ire of educated, urban middle class voters. The rally was all about Rajapaksa and UPFA official Chairman President Maithripala Sirisena seemed like a non-entity.<\/p>\n

\u201cAppachchi\u201d, the theme song of Rajapaksa\u2019s election campaign in January, was played before his speech, probably to boost the feel-good factor of the former President. Rajapaksa pompously looked around when everyone else on the stage stood on their feet and started clapping when the song was being played at the rally. <\/p>\n

The former President, for a moment, regained his \u2018royal status\u2019 which he sadly lost with the defeat of Presidential election, six months ago. It appeared as if the UPFA had turned the Parliamentary election into a \u2018Prime Ministerial election\u2019 as its entire campaign only focuses on the Prime Ministerial candidate.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

It is common knowledge that a Presidential election is a battle between individuals and personalities. The entire country is considered as one polling divisions, and winners and losers of the race are determined based on island-wide results. Boosting and inflating the candidate\u2019s image is arguably the surest way to win a Presidential election, especially in this part of the world.<\/p>\n

A Parliamentary election is a different ball game altogether. Every district is a new battle front and every soldier, every bullet and every casualty contributes to the final result, some way or the other. In a Parliamentary election, the primary focus has to be on the team and its effort, and not on attempts to cash in on individual popularity of two or three key candidates in the campaign.<\/p>\n

This is where the UPFA whose de facto campaign leader is Mahinda Rajapaksa losing its way at the outset of a very crucial election campaign. The entire campaign of the party totally depends on the individual popularity of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa and it has become the only \u201cselling point\u201d for the UPFA which ruled the country for nearly 10 years.<\/p>\n

JVP becoming a formidable third force<\/strong><\/p>\n

A sizable proportion of UPFA candidates are under investigation over bribery, corruption and crimimal charges. Some candidates had to sign their nomination papers to contest the election while in remand prison. On the other hand, the UPFA has failed to field young and popular candidates who can draw new votes into the party’s vote bank. What the UPFA has to offer is the old wine in old bottles without any sort of \u2018value addition’. One should also understand the fact that \u2018incumbency fatigue\u2019 too was a major reason for the UPFA’s downfall at the Parliamentary election six months ago.<\/p>\n

The UNP and the JVP, on the other hand, have realised the nature of Parliamentary elections when designing their election campaigns. The UNP, over the past few years, had only 47 members in Parliament and it created ample space for new candidates to join the electoral fray. The UNP, in its election advertisements, promotes the strength of the UNP team rather than blindly inflating the image of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe. This is an indication that the party has at least understood the dynamics of the contest it is in.<\/p>\n

The JVP, which is emerging as a formidable third force in the country\u2019s politics, has shown remarkable progress in fielding suitable candidates who can change the deep-rooted political culture of the country. Over the past few months, there was a strong demand from the civil society for politicians with sound educational background. Catering to this demand, the JVP has fielded a dynamic team whose educational background is beyond question. The majority of its district leaders are graduates from local universities and its national list is fully comprised of professionals and intellectuals. By presenting a national list of that nature, the JVP has shown its commitment to an \u201ceducated\u201d and \u201ccultured\u201d Parliament \u2013 something Sri Lankan politics lacked for more than 15 years.<\/p>\n

As a result of this, the UPFA has already lost the support of civil society groups who strongly backed President Maithripala Sirisena\u2019s candidacy at the last Presidential election. Convener of the Movement for a Just Society, Maduluwawe Sobhitha Thera has already expressed his displeasure over the candidates\u2019 list presented by the UPFA, led by President Sirisena. By making President Sirisena the Chairman of the UPFA coalition, some seniors of the SLFP thought they would be in a position to draw the support of at least some members of the civil society groups who played a crucial role in the country\u2019s politics in January. The final list of UPFA nominations, unfortunately, has diminished hopes for any support from civil society groups as it included candidates who even faced murder charges.<\/p>\n

How President\u2019s statement turned UPFA campaign topsy-turvy<\/strong><\/p>\n

The other challenge the UPFA has to face is the debilitating impact of President Sirisena\u2019s address to the nation last week. In his speech, President Sirisena indicated Rajapaksa would not be appointed as the Prime Minister even of the UPFA secured a victory at the Parliamentary election. He also said Rajapaksa would lose the election as he lost on January 08 and he needed a Parliament that was willing to proceed with the January 08 mandate. All these claims were detrimental to the UPFA campaign due to several reasons.<\/p>\n

One has to understand that former President Rajapaksa has already cultivated a section of \u201cdie-hard\u201d supporters who blindly follow him without questioning flaws and shortcomings in his 10 year administration. At the same time, there is a sizable proportion of SLFP supporters who are confused over present state of affairs in the party. In addition to die-hard supporters and confused voters, there are \u2018floating voters\u2019 who can go either way, depending on the mood of the \u2018political moment\u2019. \u2018Floating votes\u2019 therefore, play a pivotal role when determining winners and losers in any national level elections.<\/p>\n

The President\u2019s statement on giving nominations to the former President may strengthen the will of the die-hard Rajapaksa supporters to protect him and make him victorious against all odds. At the same time, it will drive away a large number of “confused” SLFPers and floating voters who are still indecisive on the Parliamentary election. When it comes to a crucial national level election, this can be a serious issue that can cripple the UPFA campaign.<\/p>\n

This is exactly why Minister S.B. Dissanayake, addressing a balamandala meeting in the Kandy district, said the President\u2019s statement on the UPFA nominations turned the party\u2019s campaign topsy-turvy. While admitting that the statement was detrimental to the party, Disanayake, a seasoned campaigner, stressed the need of overcoming this difficult situation by strengthening the party.<\/p>\n

Apart from the President\u2019s statement, serious internal divisions too have affected the party\u2019s campaign at the grassroots level. The pro-Rajapaksa factor, while declaring war on the UNP, is also urging the SLFP voters to refrain from voting for candidates supportive of President Sirisena. They specifically target UPFA candidates who accepted ministerial portfolios from President Maithripala Sirisena to help smooth functioning of his government. <\/p>\n

This group include Felix Perera, Sudharshini Fernandopulle, S.B. Dissanayake, Mahinda Amaraweera. Shantha Bandara, Janaka Bandara Tennakoon, Duminda Dissanayake, Nirupama Rajapaksa, Eric Prasanna Weerawardena, Dayasritha Thisera and several other ex-Parliamentarians. Former Chairman od Kotikawatte-Mulleriyawa PS Prasanna Solangarachchi, who obtained a court order from the Colombo District Court preventing the Central Committee meeting last week, is also at the receiving end of this internal hate-campaign of the party. <\/p>\n

Although the party is contesting the election as one unit, there are two groups internally, competing with each other. Duminda Dissanayake, the UPFA\u2019s strongest candidate from the Anuradhapura District, boycotted the UPFA inaugural rally in Anuradhapura on the grounds that it was chaired by former President Rajapaksa. Dissanayake was at loggerheads with the Rajapaksa family since his father\u2019s untimely demise after the last North Central Provincial Council election.<\/p>\n

This situation has compelled some UPFA ex-Parliamentarians to resign from their ministerial portfolios. Last week, three deputy ministers of the UPFA, addressing a press conference in Colombo, announced their decision to resign from their government positions. They said they were resigning in protest of the President\u2019s address to the nation on the UPFA nominations. <\/p>\n

Although the announcement of their resignation was done with much media fanfare, the MPs, who represented Parliament for five long years, were not aware of the fact that the cabinet turned into a caretaker one with the dissolution of Parliament and the announcement of election. In that context, their resignations do not make any impact on the government and its affairs due to the caretaker nature of the cabinet. The resignation was nothing but a futile attempt to pander to the pro-Rajapaksa sentiments of the UPA voters.<\/p>\n

Removal of President Sirisena as SLFP Chairman no easy task<\/strong><\/p>\n

Minister Janaka Bandara Tennakoon, another ex-UPFA MP who supported President Sirisena after the Presidential election, held a press conference soon after the President\u2019s address to the nation last week. It was Tennakoon who urged the party General Secretary to convene an urgent Central Committee meeting to discuss about the new situation. Many party supporters thought Tennakoon\u2019s call for an urgent Central Committee meeting was aimed at ousting President Maithripala Sirisena from his position as the UPFA Chairman.<\/p>\n

Tennakoon was among the first group of SLFP Central Committee members who extended their support to President Sirisena after the Presidential election. Before the Presidential polls, Addressing a party meeting in Dambulla, Tennakoon, a party stalwart for nearly three decades, broke down in tears when explaining the state of affairs in the SLFP. It did not require a lot of wisdom to realize that Tennakoon\u2019s criticism was directed at the Rajapaksa family who ruled the party with an iron first while sidelining the SLFP old guard.<\/p>\n

The UPFA seniors, including the die-hard Rajapaksa supporters, know that ousting President Sirisena from the SLFP top post is no easy task. President Sirisena\u2019s appointment as the SLFP Leader was sanctioned by the party constitution which had crystal clear provision on the appointment of the party Chairman. Therefore, the party cannot remove President Sirisena from the leadership without amending its constitution. Any constitutional amendment has to be endorsed by the party at a general convention and that is a long and time-consuming process.<\/p>\n

The SLFP constitution says if a party member becomes the head of state, he or she should be appointed as the party Chairman. The provision was introduced to the SLFP constitution by none other than former President Mahinda Rajapaksa to remove former President Kumaratunga from the SLFP chairmanship in 2006. Ironically, the provision introduced to remove former President Kumaratunga from the top post of the SLFP has strengthened President Sirisena\u2019s position against Rajapaksa\u2019s attempt to regain power in the SLFP.<\/p>\n

The general perception that the UPFA is at loggerheads with President Sirisena also weakens the party\u2019s election campaign \u2013 to a great extent. This ongoing crisis gives the impression that the party cannot cooperate with President Sirisena after the election, if it manages to form a government after August 17. When the Legislature is on a collision course with the Executive, it naturally paves way for political instability in the country. Public fear of political instability too stands in the way of the UPFA\u2019s victory at this juncture.<\/p>\n

Realizing this harsh reality, the Sri Lanka Freedom Party seniors are now attempting to hold negotiations with President Maithripala Sirisena to resolve the issue surrounding the SLFP Central Committee amicably. SLFP General Secretary Anura Priyadarshana Yapa and several other seniors are expected to meet President Sirisena on Wednesday to discuss further about the matter and arrive at a settlement.<\/p>\n

Alluding to this tug of war, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, addressing an election meeting in Galgamuwa, asked whether a future UPFA government, with Mahinda Rajapaksa as the Prime Minister, was willing to cooperate with President Maithripala Sirisena in running the administration.<\/p>\n


\nNational government talks already underway<\/strong><\/p>\n

It is against this backdrop that a group of ex-UPFA Parliamentarians are in discussions with a section of the United National Front for Good Governance to form a national government after the election. They think that is a certain and decisive way of defeating the Rajapaksa factor in the country\u2019s political landscape. This moves, according to informed SLFP sources, comes with the backing of President Maithripala Sirisena who has also expressed willingness to form a national government for at least two years. According to the national government initiative, a section of UPFA MPs elected to the new Parliament will extend their support to President Sirisena to form a national government.<\/p>\n

However, President Sirisena has already stated that the Cabinet of the new government would be limited to 30. But, the 19th Amendment to the constitution has provisions to increase the size of the Cabinet when forming a national government. Apart from that, the UNP\u2019s share in new Parliament too will play a major role in deciding the necessity of a national government. If the UNP gets over 120 seats in Parliament, the President will run into practical difficulties when forming a national government.
\nAs part of that plan, an attempt to suspend the party membership of Dr. Rajitha Senaratne, M.K.D.S. Gunawardena, Hirunika Premachandra and Arjuna Ranatunga was blocked by President Sirisena when he cancelled the Central Committee meeting convened by SLFP General Secretary Anura Priyadarshana Yapa last week. The main objective of the meeting was to suspend the party membership of those who aligned themselves with the United National Party to contest the election. The move came as a measure to counter the President\u2019s speech made just five weeks before the Parliamentary election. Almost all SLFP members who joined to form the United National Front for Good Governance, needless to say, are close associates of President Sirisena.<\/p>\n

Speaking to his supporters, Minister Rajitha Senaratne made an interesting remark over the moves to suspend his party membership.<\/p>\n

\u201cLet them suspend us from the party. We don\u2019t care. My membership was suspended before the last Presidential election too. President Maithripala Sirisena was also suspended from the party. We got our membership back just days after the election. Maithripala Sirisena was made the new Chairman of the party. I was appointed as a Vice Chairman. So, if they suspend us now, we will take back our positions after the election. Let\u2019s see how they are going to prevent that,\u201d Senaratne\u2019s fiery remark alluded to the post-election national government initiative.<\/p>\n

However, if the pro-Rajapaksa group manages to defeat all anti-Rajapaksa elements at the Parliamentary election, it will certainly put a damper on national government plans. But, whether ever one who has rallied behind Rajapaksa is a genuine supporter of the former President remains a question!<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s one Galle District ex-Parliamentarian who was a staunch supporter of Mahinda Rajapaksa in the past few months. He was elected from the UNP and he later joined the Rajapaksa regime to support the 18th Amendment to the constitution which strengthened \u2018constitutional autocracy\u2019. Soon after the Presidential polls, he extended his support to Presiden Sirisena despite campaigning against him at the election.A few weeks later, he tried to contest the Parliamentary election on the UNP ticket. But, the UNP shut him out as he crossed over to the other side at a crucial point. When the UNP rejected him, he became a staunch supporter of Mahinda Rajapaksa. He knew supporting Rajapaksa would ensure him a five year term in new Parliament. But, after the election, he may take a U-turn and align himself with another camp. A sizable proportion of MPs supporting Rajapaksa know that he has 5.8 million vote bank on which they can capitalize,\u201d a senior UPFA Parliamentarian told the Daily News.<\/p>\n

It is na\u00efve to believe that former President Mahinda Rajapaksa whose political career spans over four and a half decade is unaware of dangers lying ahead of him. Rajapaksa has been in the business long enough to know that politics is akin to a game of chess in more ways than one. One thing Rajapaksa should realize that his b\u00eate noire President Sirisena too has been in his camp long enough to know all the skills he has mastered through the years. That was why President Sirisena managed to defeat Rajapaksa decisively in the first round of the game, six months ago. <\/p>\n

Courtesy:Daily News<\/em><\/p>\n

Tweet<\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Rasika Jayakody \u201cYou sit at the board and suddenly your heart leaps. Your hand trembles to pick up the piece and move it. But what chess teaches you is that you must sit there calmly and think about whether it’s really a good idea and whether there are other, better ideas.\u201d…………Stanley Kubrick The UPFA\u2019s …<\/p>\n

Continue reading ‘Personal Popularity of Mahinda Rajapaksa has Become the Sole “Selling Point” of UPFA Campaign in Polls’ »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[12],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42273"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=42273"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42273\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":42275,"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42273\/revisions\/42275"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=42273"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=42273"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=42273"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}