{"id":202882,"date":"2019-06-24T15:00:26","date_gmt":"2019-06-24T09:30:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/?p=202882"},"modified":"2019-06-25T14:35:24","modified_gmt":"2019-06-25T09:05:24","slug":"slpp-power-struggle-continues-mahinda-says-search-for-prez-candidate-not-complete-basil-admits-its-gota","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/slpp-power-struggle-continues-mahinda-says-search-for-prez-candidate-not-complete-basil-admits-its-gota\/","title":{"rendered":"SLPP Power Struggle Continues: Mahinda Says Search For Prez Candidate Not Complete, Basil Admits It’s Gota!"},"content":{"rendered":"

Despite repeated assurances, the Rajapaksa brothers Mahinda and Basil have yet again made it evident that a power struggle ensues within the family as pressure builds to name a candidate for the upcoming Presidential poll from Sri Lanka PoduJana Peramuna (SLPP).\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Responding to queries by media, Basil Rajapaksa<\/span><\/strong><\/a> was announcing details of the upcoming SLPP national assembly scheduled for August 11, when a journalist posed a question on Basil\u2019s level of contribution at the upcoming Presidential poll campaign when Gotabaya Rajapaksa<\/span><\/strong><\/a> is fielded.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have always extended my fullest support and efforts to Presidential poll campaigns and this time won\u2019t be any different\u2026\u201d Basil said without denying the journalist\u2019s claim that Gotabaya is to be announced as SLPP candidate and adds, \u201c…in fact this time, I will do even better!\u201d<\/p>\n

Basil in his comments, also notes Mahinda Rajapaksa<\/span><\/strong><\/a> will be appointed as the SLPP leader at the upcoming assembly who will thereafter announce the Presidential poll candidate at the same event.<\/p>\n

However, Mahinda had a different picture to paint when he met with journalists in Kandy yesterday.<\/p>\n

Mahinda says SLPP will field a winning candidate, “someone who will protect and safeguard the country and protect its people.\u201d \u201cWe are looking for such a leader,\u201d he told journalists.<\/p>\n

When a journalist in the crowd asked if the search is complete, Mahinda added with a chuckle, “not yet,” giving clear indications to the fact that he is not yet ready to finalize Gotabaya\u2019s candidacy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

[…]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":191837,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,2186,1,2375],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-202882","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-colombotelegraph","category-featured-news","category-news","category-stories"],"yoast_head":"\nSLPP Power Struggle Continues: Mahinda Says Search For Prez Candidate Not Complete, Basil Admits It's Gota! - Colombo Telegraph<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/slpp-power-struggle-continues-mahinda-says-search-for-prez-candidate-not-complete-basil-admits-its-gota\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"SLPP Power Struggle Continues: Mahinda Says Search For Prez Candidate Not Complete, Basil Admits It's Gota! 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