It may be good for Sri Lanka and democracy that the UNP at least retained the CMC though it lost Kandy after 58 years and Nuwara Eliya after 28 years. Many independent observers say one of the many reasons for the Colombo victory by the UNP was the controversy over the alleged plan to evict thousands of slum dwelling families as part of the City beautifying process. UPFA leaders and the UDA had reportedly said this but when the controversy grew they claimed there would be no evictions but new houses would be built in the same area for the slum dwellers. It appears that not many slum dwellers though their literacy rate might not be so high, believed this promise because they and others know that most politicians today are great promise makers but rather poor in keeping those promises.

After the victory, the divided and battered UNP now has a major and important role to play in Colombo City. The party’s future depends largely on what the party does or does not do in Colombo City even though the government leaders and the UDA may go all out to put the UNP in a garbage dump. An up and coming hill-country politico now in Colombo supporting the Government went public stating that the minorities are shifting from the UNP to the UPFA. Where Colombo is concerned, he has to eat his own words, despite the rivalry of Mano Ganesan’s Democratic People’s Front and the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress, the UNP won the highest number of seats in Colombo.

However, most people in other areas appear to be still grateful for the May 2009 victory over the LTTE and are supporting the Government of the day. Sri Lanka being the home of four major religions cannot allow brazen party politics and violent battles for preferential votes to mar and muddle elections. It was reassuring to hear President Mahinda Rajapaksa saying this week he would order the police to get rid of small arms from the possession of all those concerned especially party politicians and their supporters.

Source: Daily Mirror - Sri Lanka