Can even snake charmer Dilith make a condemned bud bloom
Presidential hopeful Dilith Jayaweera gave a no-holdsbarred lashing to Basil Rajapaksa last week for demanding a general election to be held before the constitutionally scheduled presidential poll.
In a fiery speech, the leader of the recently created Mawbima Janatha Party, struck a blow for the motherland when he raised the valid and pertinent question at his party’s meeting: “Can an American dictate to us to hold general elections before a presidential poll.”
He declared: ‘‘This is not a country where an American called Basil can come on vacation every now and then and play his tune. Whether the election to be held in this country is the parliamentary election or the presidential election is not something that can be left to the American Basil to decide. Who is Basil to take a hand in national politics?”
After lambasting Basil and distancing himself as far as possible from him but balming Mahinda with praise, Dilith turned to the topic of candidate. “Prasanna Ranatunga says that there is no SLPP candidate for the presidential election this time. How can he say there is no candidate? Yes, there is no candidate for Basil's bud. But there is a candidate for the people’s bud. That's why I am Dilith Jayaweera.”
Has Dilith set his sights on attempting a last-minute nomination shot at the SLPP candidacy? Has he seen enough of the internecine warfare ripping the SLPP apart, that he smells blood? Yes, he clearly showed at MJP’s Badulla meeting last week, this was the time to go for the kill.
He threw down the gauntlet and challenged the SLPP leadership: “Put me. For the people’s sake, put me. I am the one who drew by hand the SLPP’s bud and wrote by hand the slogan, ‘Aluth Sri Lankawak’.’The bud belongs to us. To the new generation of patriotic people.”
He may have been successfully able to charm a snake to rise from the bowels of Kelani’s watery bed five years ago but it will certainly take more than a heavenly miracle for him to breathe life into a condemned bud to bloom in winter’s discontent.