Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa does not want to destabilize the Provincial Councils (PCs) administered by the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA), Western Province Chief Minister Isura Devapriya said today.
He said it was those in the lower rungs of the joint opposition that were seeking to cause trouble not Mr. Rajapaksa or representatives at the higher levels of the party.
“We understand the pulse of the former president. He is always with the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), the main constituent partner of the UPFA,” he told Daily Mirror.
Commenting on the current state of affairs of the North Central Provincial Council (NCPC), the Chief Minister said any councillor could act independently but they cannot change the Chief Minister.
It was reported that a group consisting of 18 UPFA councillors of the NCPC would act independently in protest over the SLFP decision to replace the Council’s health minister.
According to the Provincial Council Act, only the UPFA General Secretary has the authority to change the Chief Minister, the WP Chief Minister said. “Just because a group of councillors decide to act independently, they cannot change the CM. The law prevails above all. It’s the party general secretary who names the group leader and the CM,” he said.
Chief Minister Devapriya said an independent group could change the administration by defeating the budget but added that there is no budget impending for the NCPC. “The term of the council will expire in 4 months anyway,” he said.(Lahiru Pothmulla)
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