Alliance - SLFP-SLPP must compromise on policy: Dayasiri

SLFP General Secretary Dayasiri Jayasekara said yesterday party leaders like President Maithripala Sirisena, Mahinda Rajapaksa and Basil Rajapaksa must arrive at a compromise on the policies of the proposed alliance.

He said the other leaders of the proposed alliance like Dinesh, Wimal and Gammanpila could come in later.

The MP said the SLFP had prepared a set of policies to be adopted when an SLPP-SLFP alliance is formed and it had to be accepted by the SLPP.

"If the SLPP has a genuine desire to form an alliance with the SLFP, discussions will have to be concluded on a positive note before the end of August with both parties agreeing to a set of polices," he said.

The MP said the SLFP would urge the President to order the export of the 241 containers of garbage back to the country of origin.

He highlighted the fact that gazette notice dated November 7, 2013, signed by the finance minister of the Rajapaksa government had permitted the import of garbage.

At a news briefing the MP pointed out that according to the gazette, the garbage importers were exempt from Sri Lanka Customs Regulations, BOI regulations and Exchange Control regulations while the initial investment of US$5 million had also been reduced to US$ 2 million on the intervention of the then government.

“It is sad and insulting to realise that Sri Lanka has become the rubbish dump of Britain. This has to be stopped at once,” he said. "As a result of this shortsighted and suspicious deal, 111 containers of garbage are laying at the Colombo Port and another 130 containers with similar cargo have been found at a company premises in the Export Processing Zone in Katunayaka with 27,685 metric tons of industrial waste putting the health of the people at risk."

Commenting on media reports that the President and the government had done nothing to mitigate the sufferings of the victims of the Easter Sunday attacks, the MP said the allegations were wrong and vicious.

“The President has taken all possible measures to contain religious terrorism, arrested a large number of terrorists, unearthed stocks of explosives and compensated the victims and rebuilt the churches with the help of the Sri Lanka Army and Navy. No attacks took place after April 21," the MP said. (Sandun A Jayasekera)