Wimal's plain quip about Mattala

It was a special flight for some Government MPs to travel to Kataragama to pay their last respects to Venerable Aluthwewe Soratha Thera, Chief Incumbent of the Kirivehera temple.

From Ratmalana to the Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (MRIA), they were flown and later driven in a luxury coach to Kataragama. After landing in Mattala, some MPs noted that Minister Mahinda Amaraweera seemed uneasy for some reason.

One of them questioned him and pat came the answer. "I asked my driver to come over and pick me up from the SLAF airfield at Wirawila and not Mattala," he replied. "Oyath hariyata kaala gunaya wagey waradda gaththada (You also got it wrong like the changing weather. Didn't you?) remarked Minister Wimal Weerawansa.

United National Party (UNP) Parliamentarian Gayantha Karunatilleke who was also at Kataragama asked Minister Weerawansa why there were no aircraft to be seen at Mattala. "Mey monawa kiyanawada. Api ena hinda okkoma plane tika ayin karala" (What are you talking. All the planes have been removed because we were coming) said Minister Weerawansa.