Minister of Finance and Media Mangala Samaraweera said that Ranil Wickremesinghe is the only person suited to be a presidential candidate in 2020.
Mangala Samaraweera
Samaraweera made this statement at a workshop for United National Party (UNP) members recently elected to local government bodies in the Matara District.
He added that it is humorous that it is those who are with the Joint Opposition (JO) that is calling for Wickremesinghe’s ouster as the Leader of the UNP.
Samaraweera also referred to the case of Sirimavo Bandaranaike who did not step down as the SLFP Leader in the late nineties in the face of a challenge mounted by her son Anura: ‘It was not that she coveted the position but she understood the danger of the party disintegrating without a proper leadership.’
He confessed that it was he who had orchestrated a poster campaign under the theme ‘Ranil Cannot’ or ‘Ranil is not Capable’ in the run up to the 1999 Presidential Election when Chandrika Kumaratunga sought re-election.
‘We knew that in fact Ranil was capable and that he would be our biggest threat. It’s the same situation today. It is very clear that Ranil Wickremesinghe is the most suitable presidential candidate.’
Faraj / May 13, 2018
Well, everyone has the right to express his/her own personal opinions
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Fathima / May 13, 2018
People have to get real. Ranil is the best available to challenge a powerful Rajafucksa comeback bid. If anyone else contests UNP will be divided giving the opponent a clear win. In 2015 a significant percentage of UNPers didn’t vote for Sirisena who is a SLFP man. They will vote if Ranil contests. Ranil has far more minority support than Sirisena had.
JO people spread falsehoods to divide the UNP. Don’t fall. Ranil can deliver the goods in 2020.
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Anonymous / May 13, 2018
Fathima, you are probably right on this. But Ranil has not done enough to bring the Rajapaksas Criminal to justice…
It seems like this Government is unable/unwilling to take action against them! Even probably protecting them…
Even Malaysia is taking action against the corrupt former Prime Minister Najib Razak so why aren’t we!?
Let’s hand them over to the Hage if we can do the job.
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Native Vedda / May 14, 2018
Anonymous
–
“It seems like this Government is unable/unwilling to take action against them! Even probably protecting them…”
–
Can you think of any example the ruling party ever sending crooks from previous government to prison?
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punchinilame / May 14, 2018
Agreed as not in the past. Now that Law & Order is being refurbished and with a special
Court to try Corruption, a change could be
expected – definitely within the next 17 months – and well timed to keep the
Rajapakses out of politics for some time?
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Anonymous / May 15, 2018
Native Vedda, yes it has not happened in the past. That doesn’t mean it must not happen now. About time a new precedent is set for the betterment of our country…
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Anonymous / May 15, 2018
“Viyath Maga” has become a Rajapaksas Criminal Network front!? The #CID and #INTERPOL must keep a close eye on this movement and the people behind it.
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Fathima / May 13, 2018
Fathima:
You think Ranil is the best and Ranil himself wouldn’t think so, and bring in another common candidate. The amount of lost UNP votes for fielding Sirisena, is not that significant compared to the amount that would have been lost, had Ranil himself contested. Up to a certain extend, people tried an “unknown angel” in 2015.
Mangala has the confidence, you have the confidence in Ranil. Does he himself have confidence in himself?
Fathima Mansoor
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Sinhala_Man / May 21, 2018
So, there indeed are two Fathimas who have to be distinguished by their gravitars.
.
This is Fathima Mansoor.
.
It’s your comments that I find quite intelligent.
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Amarasiri / May 13, 2018
Minister of Finance and Media Mangala Samaraweera,
“Minister of Finance and Media Mangala Samaraweera said that Ranil Wickremesinghe is the only person suited to be a presidential candidate in 2020.”
Amarasiri Agrees, but need some changes for Ranil W.
1. Ranil needs to shed his trousers and wear the suit of JR Jayawardane or the suit of Premaadasa.
2. Ranil has no children and no dynasty, just like Dudley Senanayaka.He needs to keeo saying that I have no sons to destroy night cluns like Daham Sirisena, or the Rajapaksa brats to kill the innocenrs or to do motor racers aroundDalasa Maligawa.
3. Therefore, I am cool and do not panic, unlike the Gamarala Sirisena.
4. While I may be surrounded by crooks who steal, I do not steal because I have no children.
5. I let my crooks steal a little bit so that they will not cross over and steal more by joining the Rajapaksas.
6. I am best available candidate to lead a country infested with Paras whose mean IQ is 79, who repeatedly elect idiots with IQ’s even below the population mean.
7. Sirisena, the Gamarala, has turned out to be a Traitor, Patholaya, Crook, Sevalaya, and Perethaya to the 6.2 million who elected him..
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Kasakara / May 18, 2018
Ranil the a..hole stole Central Bank to the tune of Billions of $ ,who dare say he would ever deliver goods
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Native Vedda / May 14, 2018
Faraj
–
“Well, everyone has the right to express his/her own personal opinions”
–
Yeah, will we enjoy the right/freedom to think independently and express our own personal opinions publicly if Dr Gota appoints himself as the next National Hangman with a large fleet of White Vans?
–
In that case anyone with an iota of brain will want to keep himself to himself.
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Prema / May 18, 2018
This comment was removed by a moderator because it didn’t abide by our Comment policy.For more detail see our Comment policy https://www.colombotelegraph.com/index.php/comments-policy-2/
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WalaGemba Raja / May 13, 2018
What the F does a batik shirt designer know about the electoral and geo politics of this country. The only way that RanilW could win is through a large scale vote rigging. But RW does not even have the brains to cheat. Not even Cambridge Analytica type of sleazy companies or profiteers can deliver a victory to a loser such as RW. If he contests, this will earn another DEFEAT for the UNP and propel Goata to power. There is not a Royalist in any political garbage heap that can win an election with grass root level support. Not even Sajith P can achieve this milestone. Sajith could have pulled this off had the UNP strategically groomed him a decade ago. But as he ages, this becomes even more difficult undertaking for Sajith I am sure Vigneswaran can win hands down in the North and might have a fighting chance in the East, although not elsewhere in the country.
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anonymous / May 13, 2018
@WalaGemba,
The name suits you well my friend.
Batic designers and products have been there for decades and it is an industry which brings FX to the country (Laksalais an exampleand popular among tourists), unlike importing super luxury pieces of metal, Mercs, Prados, Jaguars Lamborginies……..etc for the 226+now 8000 new ‘Haal Paaruwas’, which depreciates and has no book value after 5 years.
“Sajith could have pulled this off had the UNP strategically groomed him a decade ago. “
For your information, Sajith has been carrying his box guitar in the UK for tooooo long, and that is no one’s fault. From your comment above, I assume you are another ‘Dodgy Charactor’ just like ‘ Army Deserter Gota’ trying to fish in muddy waters. Get a life, if you gotone.
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WalaGemba Raja / May 13, 2018
@anonyous,
I am proud that idiots like you are not the coterie of my friends. Plus my name is satire. If you “HALL PAARUVA’s” know anything about poetry, then it is allegory. It’s a character from our own Sinhala history and literature of depicting a monarch that is purposefully misspelled as slapstick. Therefore, anonymous, do you know what all this means to losers like you who think RW has any grass root support? on the other hand, if you are another loser who supports the ‘Royal College” elitist mentality and attitude, then I am least surprised of your comment because losers like Ranil, Mangala, Malik and Kabir and the rest of the “Royal HORRA KALLIYA” don;t get the big picture at all. All you products of Royal left that institution to go to a political “Kaddai” and thus, not being true to the mantra of your own hallowed institution’s motto, “DISCE AUT DISCADE”. Don;t comment like an ass in these forums and get your biased emotions to get the head of you. Be realistic by science, statistics and facts that can be supported by evidence. Noen of these sciences too have not much meaning to losers who do not have any common sense like RW. Therefore, anonymous, can you name a towering loser like RW with a monumental recod of failure in any other political arena’s in the world? This fool RW that you support was the weakest link of the JR Jayawardena government and was given that post because the UNP is still that notorious Uncle Nephew Party for the Royalist by Royalist. The SLFP is not better as this party degraded to become Solomon Loser’s Family Party. Now do you get where I am going you anonymous JACKASS!
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anonymous / May 13, 2018
@WaleGemba
My dear friend
“The fool who knows he is a fool at least a little wise;
the fool who thinks he is wise, is assuredly a fool” ##Dammapada verse 64
“The spoons unable to taste the flavour of the soup,
are the fools who cannot see truth,
even though they live all their lives among the wise” ‘##Dammapada verse 65
May you be well, happy, peaceful and most of all be free from suffering (Dvesha…Moha). Suwapath Weva!Metta.
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WalaGemba Raja / May 14, 2018
Dammapada verses would be much more meaningful to an absolute fool like you if you know Sanskrit. “Suwapath wewa” to Rajakeeya happano!
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Mugalan / May 14, 2018
Sajith is best suitable to be prime Minister.He has no international acceptance.Like his father he is a good no two. Not number one. As no one late Premadasa President is a faliure.He too like Rajapakse ruled the country with an iron fist.He was the one who introduced fear to srilankans. That is why srilankans rejoiced when he was assassinated. We condemn his killing. If he had waited as no two he would have served people much mure.If R P did not send IPKF they would have eliminated Prabakaran.
He at the instigation of J V P wanted IPKF out.. He was not a far sighted leader like J R.
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Sinhala_Man / May 13, 2018
Mangala is one of the better UNP Ministers.
.
But he, too is insulting us. What does Mangala mean by acknowledging this?
.
“it was he who had orchestrated a poster campaign . . . ‘Ranil Cannot’ or ‘Ranil is not Capable.’ “
.
Ranil has lost once, denied nomination once, dodged twice: that was with no Bond Scam. What sort of leader is this?
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Yes, he can be the candidate? Some will vote for him, I will not!
.
We go for Nagananda. Ben Hurling, are you still suggesting that he gets this guy also in?:
.
https://www.colombotelegraph.com/index.php/rohan-pallewatta-man-who-has-proved-that-sri-lanka-can-also-do/
.
That was your suggestion.
.
We need no more politicians who are inconsistent and sans principles.
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Jim softy / May 13, 2018
Sinhala MAn: Are these the protestant nominations for the president ?. I thought NAgananda was a genuine man fighting corruption. Itis very clear that Sugandhiks is imposter because the way she presented her case. for m,e Rohan Pallewaththa looked like a Church priest giving a talk.
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Bunjappu / May 14, 2018
Yes we dont have better choice than Nagananda.My fear is if the average would getvhis value.
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Jim softy / May 13, 2018
In sinhala this is called “MURUGAN ATHTHE NENVEEMA: god bless UNP..
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Rigmarole / May 13, 2018
Result predictions.
Ranil WINS with 51% of the vote with only 30% of the Sinhala vote and nearly 100% of the Indian Tamil. Ceylon Tamil and Moor votes.
GOTA runner up with 44.5% of the vote but with over 42% of that is Sinhala Buddhist votes
Yahapaalana Sirisena third with less than 10% of the vote and 9% of it Sinhala Buddhist from NCP
Ranil will finally lead us to a modern post industrial nation respected by the USA and EU.
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sach / May 13, 2018
respected by the USA and EU.////
HA HA ha ..these slaves only care about what their masters think
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Sinhala_Man / May 14, 2018
Dear Rigmarole,
.
It looks to me as though you have constructed your argument on the assumption that someone will get over 50% of the vote on the first count. So far, this has always happened.
.
But in’t it possible that with three or four candidates being quite serious in seeking office, nobody will reach 50%. I’m myself not sure what would happen if 50% + one vote is not reached even after the Third round of counting.
.
Very few voters opt to indicate more than one preference. My guess is that it is not even 01%, yes, below one per cent.
.
For that matter, I wonder if there wouldn’t be some readers (sorry, never a wise thing to insult you like that!) of this site, usually visited by the more educated, are aware that three preferences are possible.
.
Whilst admitting the difficulty of identifying promising young candidates, isn’t it worrying that in this country no politician ever seems to retire?
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Rigmarole / May 13, 2018
Also remember Ranil is very pro USA; and very pro Evangelical Christian because his Uncle was a respected famous Bishop of the Anglican Church. USA gave over 50Million dollars to UNP last time via Assembly of God person EW whose father is the head of the local chapter. USA will also engage in Facebook manipulation and Twitter manipulation. Fonny is already getting Gota framed for the murder and assault he carried out together with Gota. So Gota will LOSE. USA wants a toehold in Trincomalee. If you watched recent win the hearts and minds campaign by US military, it was all in North East. Why was that?
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Bobby Pereira / May 13, 2018
Ranil will go down in history books as the only leader of a former colony who wanted to invite the former colonial masters to celebrate the invasion. (By the Portugese in 1505). He said this in 2002 and wanted to do in 2005. Luckily he had lost the prime ministerial power by 2005.
Will any citizen of Sri Lanka with an iota of self respect vote for this clown ? (may be with the exception of few ardent UNPers and few Catholics) to be the President?
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Percy / May 13, 2018
People have forgotten that Mangala’s views are those of a loser and cannot be etaken seriously. If the results of the recent LG polls are to be taken seriously, Mangala has lost his Matara seat lock,stock, and barrel. Disloyalty and dishonesty is nothing new to the SAMARAWEERA family. His father Mahanama was elected to the Matara seat as a member of the Communist Party. When the Sirimavo Coalition was formed with the LSSP and CP the heavy drinking Mahanama was identified by Esmond Wickremesinghe as a potential target for purchase. His vote was bought for Rs 30000 and that helped topple Sirimas Govt in 1965. Mahanama of course went into oblivion. Now his son Mangala this new convert to the UNP is telling the country that the discredited, proven dishonest, and fractious leader Ranil should be the next President! Fortunately he is pissing into the wind. No one is listening!
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prasanna / May 13, 2018
we really dont have a choice other than Ranil. if the people and the media people want to fall for the false propaganda and bring one of a the rajapakshas back then go for it. how about the other candidates? Sajith P – had literally done nothing to the party till date, i was of a strong opinion that he should have resigned from his parliamentary seat and contested the southern provincial council elections. we did not expect him to win but to atleast bump the vote bank in the range 40-45%. then the call for his becoming UNP leader would have been much easier. this is because as he says he has the knack to become president so gaining good gains at the SPC should have been easier. but he did not proving he is a media boaster/balooned especially sirasa’s lackey politician. Any other option ? The time is at that juncture again, we need Ranil much more than he needs us. Give it up at 2020 and then we go become doomed. the so called unp back benchers must realise this, they ofcourse are playing the game of maithripala who wants to disintegrate the UNP and ensure Gotabhaya becomes president. Maithripala has already given up and he has ensured full safety/immunity from a future rajapaksha president if that might happen
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kolla / May 13, 2018
Mangala is a good example of what is wrong with our politics. Before Mrs Bandaranayake( who always thought politics was a family occupation-Matara Samaraweera, Gampaha Bandarnayake etc)) brought him in to politics, only politics Mangala did was at the Art Centre Club which was called a the Poof Headquarters.
Having done politics for 30 years he is now a rich man. I still remember how he tried to foist a sex scandal on Minister Hakeem . Two yeras ago anti Ranil procession was attacked by thugs in Matara, who provided the logistics ?
The old royalists gang is saying that Ranil is a failure this time because Sirisena is not allowing him to perform ! For all his previous failures also somebody else has to be blamed. Even the Bond scam is because people don’t understand Bonds.Only lawyer Ranil knows these things ! It is a simple logic-If Sirisena did not appoint a Presidential Commission to inquire the scam there would be no scam !
The rest of the world must keep silent and let the faggots do their criminal actions is their slogan !
Even under Sirisena ,all the financial ministries, law and order, development, investments come under Ranil . He is still a failure ! Let us have an election tomorrow.For any decent voter there is only one option. Vote for rogue MR to completely destroy this fraud Ranil !
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hancho pancha / May 13, 2018
FM Sarath Fonseka was the common candidate in 2010. Why not for 2020?
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Nosey Parker / May 13, 2018
” If a man wants to hang himself , give him a lot of rope ” – an old saying.
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watcher / May 13, 2018
What a mess, mandala went to uk for higher studies, fail all exams, and turn up being a taylor… what about his favourite hang ups around kings x, poofters land?
there is a gossip that he was blackmailed by a western intelligence with certain photo’s while he was in uk with very compromising positions.. he also took a another bu.. boy with his foreign trips with SL tax payers expense.
this is the one reason western govt. love this lackey who is nothing but a weakling selling the country and baptised ranil who has not a iota of IQ left, but still keeping to party leaders position.
Worst is the morons that support these idiots…
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K.Pillai / May 13, 2018
From now on this sort of predictions must be expected.
Compare this with the Dayan Jayatilleka’s outrageous dreams/wishful thinking!
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Good Sense / May 13, 2018
Aye! Aye! Mangy-boy! I could not agree with you more. Why? If in an exam if all are failures in a class and if a student in the class secures the best marks within the failing grades then HE IS THE BEST STUDENT OF THE CLASS. It is simple as that. Mangy-boy’s internal communications within the party may be of little interest to us and therefore not that news-worthy. What is interest to us is what are the steps that he is going to take or to encourage the UNP to take for the party to be more people-centric? As long as the party is outside the public reach everybody in the party has secured failing grades. GO! to the people.
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shankar / May 13, 2018
gota will have a block 40% guaranteed vote regardless of who will contest against him.Sirisenas SLFP has now got split and his 12% might have come down to 7% and the balance 5% might go to gota.So gota will have 45%.Sampanthan clamouring for a new constitution with devolution might alarm the JHU and they could cross over to gota.There, you have gota’s 50.1 % .
The only way to thwart him is for the UNP to increase its 30% block vote to 35% at the expense of the SLPP.To do that it has to make a leadership change and come up with a better leader than ranil.
As the entry of gota has become too risky,it is in everybody’s interest including TNA to abolish the presidency.After all did not the current president promise to do that before he was elected.
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Fairose / May 13, 2018
Ranil is no longer a potent threat; he is only a spent force. Since, he has lost all his credibility and the public attraction by his own action and failures. He must step down. I am a hard-core UNP supporter who had stood firmly in support of his leadership in the past, have lost faith as the public are distancing themselves from Ranil Wickremasinghe. He must realise that it is on public his position is determined not by his henchmen.
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Muhandiram / May 13, 2018
Is UNP so bankrupt that it cannot find any one other than RW as its next Presidential Candidate? How many Sri Lankans can forget the Bond Scam to vote for him and make him the President? Should RW win, God Forbid, wouldn’t he do everything in his power to save the Bond Thieves?
If RW is the best that the UNP can field as Presidential Candidate, that is the UNP’s Problem. Please Don’t burden the voters and the country with RW as UNP’s candidate.
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nalmen / May 13, 2018
birds of a feather flock together why only he and akil promoting ranil
he has jumped from party to party now is trying to dictate to the unp
time for the party to engage in disaster mangement
anyone other than ranil the destroyer for president
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clean slate / May 13, 2018
Why split hairs over this? It’s the Tamils in Jaffna who decide who the Sinhala president in Colombo is. Last thrèe presidential elections have proved this. Unless there is a landslide – which there wont be – same thing is going to happen next time. This is the hard cold truth. So sinhala lions, swallow this unpalatable truth. Vanakkam Aiya! Poittu vaaren.
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Real Revolutionist / May 13, 2018
Ranil, that useless, the proven weak, still being promoted as there’s no perfect man in the UNP; that’s what people understand.
Unless why can’t anybody rise to do something like what MR’s done to SLFP by creating SLPP?
Ravin/Harsha/Wasantha/Sajith/Rosy, ….etc, it’s up to you to decide
Hurry up, unless you’re destined to fail for ever.
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Thondamany / May 13, 2018
Mangala is no better UNP Ministers…………..
he is selling the Country to the West to secure for himself a UN position or something similar.
mangala will package anyone and anybody along with the Country to establish himself Internationally.
he is struggling to establish himself with the king makers of the West right now as Biswal, Malonowski, Kerry, samantha Powers gone………….
he tried selling the country at geneva………… Whats next ? To the IMF…. Then ….
Mangala loves Himself.
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Native Vedda / May 13, 2018
Thondamany
–
“Mangala is no better UNP Ministers…………..
he is selling the Country to the West to secure for himself a UN position or something similar.”
–
Could you explain why it is bad to sell the country to west than selling it to the East. The bottom line is selling your country.
–
What did you mean by selling the country?
–
We know those who sold the country to East, made lots of commission, ……. and the people are expected pay capital, interest commission, ……………. Those projects were constructed by labour brought down from China and Lakvijaya Power Station has not started working properly even after 8 years of its completion.
–
What the hell are you talking about?
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Jim softy / May 13, 2018
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Rohan Gunaratne / May 13, 2018
Just relax NV, Thonda the estate line room boy is an ace ass licker of the Rajafucksa medamulana family.
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Native Vedda / May 15, 2018
Rohan Gunaratne
–
I cannot and won’t relax until I send all the Kallathonie descendants back to their ancestral homeland mostly in South India and a few to North India. Its about 21 Millions.
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Gune / May 13, 2018
Dear Mangala,
Like you admit, you bashed Ranil to the high heavens and in the most ugliest way during CBK’s time. RW took you into the UNP when MR turned against you regardless of all that you did to him. I favoured the UNP and RW as its leader. However the time has come to change a lot of things in SL politics including known faces. Older politicians might have experience in fighting a dirty battle for survival but the truth is that they are completely out of sink with people’s expectations. The mandate given in 2015 was squandered by all of you including RW and to get people to trust the UNP again will be an uphill task.
MS is no man’s man and will be put in a political wilderness at the next election because of his own doing. Its time that the UNP seek another younger leader an unknown fresh face who could be built-up in two years to be a major challenger. People don’t have an appetite for the food they have been used to and want a new menu of young potentials to select from to rule them. The old guard will be obsolete….including you.
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K.Pillai / May 13, 2018
We have to choose the better one-eyed leader from a gallery of one-eyed. What a choice!
The one-eyed cartel will see to it that the two-eyed do ONLY menial tasks.
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punchinilame / May 14, 2018
Agreed as not in the past. Now that Law & Order is being refurbished and with a special
Court to try Corruption, a change could be
expected – definitely within the next 17 months – and well timed to keep the
Rajapakses out of politics for some time?
/
Champa / May 14, 2018
Yeah, Ranil should be given his last chance to mark the 30th defeat! Then he will go home.
But I doubt whether he has the courage to contest. He would rather secure his PM post and field someone else.
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Pala / May 14, 2018
So lets looks at this with some sense. About 40% of the Sinhalese Buddhist idiots will go with any old scoundrel from the Rajapakshe camp. One has to write them off ass useless idiots. There are quite a few of them on these forums as well. That leaves the balance 60% of whom a significant proportion are the ethnic/religious minorities. We can expect above 75% of these voters to support Ranil. Then we have the Colombo voters who are not stupid and going by previous results will vote lock stock and barrel for the UNP candidate. Ranil has a good chance of crossing 50% which is what he needs. For the smart voter will have concluded that voting for gamaralas, megalomaniacs and other misfits just because they have an appeal to the common folk only results in power going to the head and all sorts of sordid crooked goings on that result in terrible losses to the country. For example it is known that one such leader even robbed the ebony furniture at Temple Trees while replacing them with cheap imitations. That is the natural tendency of a nobody suddenly coming to power. It will also be a ticket where the next P.M. will in all likelihood be Sajith Premadasa who will then succeed Ranil not only as party leader but as president. This will be almost a rerun of the JR-Premadasa ticket. Also, there is still time to Indict the entire Rajapkshe clan for the many crimes they committed. The last time Ranil ran against a Rajapakshe he almost won but was denied the northern minority vote due to the well documented payoffs to the LTTE.
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Dan / May 14, 2018
Another six years in the opposition for the UNPers with the longest serving leader of the party. This exposes the political maturity and the selfishness of the UNPers as well as their leaders.
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Flanker / May 14, 2018
Wonder what is brewing up between them for Mangala having taken such a stance in promoting RW running for Presidency??? Rajitha Seneratne would be a better President if he is to contest…
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nosey parker / May 14, 2018
Flanker
You’ve got to be kidding !!
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Naman / May 15, 2018
After the Bond scam, most of us has lost any confidence in R.W.
It is time for an Independent genuine Sri Lankan to throw his hat to contest for the Presidential post in 2020 on promises to get the country on a clean track and send the criminals to Jails.
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