Former President Chandrika Kumaratunga and MP Kumara Welgama attended a party activist gathering in Wennappuwa last evening (November 8). The event was held at the residence of Presidential candidate and former minister Milroy Fernando.
UPFA MP Kumara Welgama speaking at this gathering said;
“After the SLPP was formed I realized that it was destroying the SLFP as it went forward. We must defeat the SLPP. It is only if we defeat the SLPP that we can protect the SLFP in the future, according to the original policies of the late Bandaranaike. The young leader says I will appoint a good prime minister who has no allegations against him and any record linked to corruption or theft. He says he will not appoint the same old cabinet. He is right. Now there is no point in appointing people like us. This is the truth. We are aging. We were also part of the corrupt cabinet. If we make the wrong decision in the upcoming presidential election, I too will suffer the same fate of Thajudeen.”
Meanwhile also speaking at the same gathering, the former President, Chandrika Kumaratunga said;
“Ever since I handed over the party to Rajapaksa, he started to destroy it. The start was when Rajapaksa visited the party headquarters and asked them to remove the photo frames of S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike, Sirimavo Bandaranaike, and Chandrika Bandaranaike. He then informed the party secretary to refrain from registering any branch. During the nine years Rajapaksa served as the chairman, he did not allow any branch to be registered. This was told to me by the then general secretary of the SLFP Maithripala Sirisena. Maithripala Sirisena who could not stand this anymore, sent letters to open branches for registration. Mahinda Rajapaksa had then summoned Maithripala Sirisena and had questioned him as to what he was doing. Mahinda Rajapaksa had then said, I have given the responsibility to my younger brother Basil, let him do it. The original SLFPers do not agree with the Rajapaksas. The true and original SLFP does not like looting. The SLFP had no tradition of looting from the general public.”
(Mirror)