Mahinda confident of forming next Govt; says ties with Sirisena cordial

Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa

Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, who will be contesting the upcoming parliamentary election, has expressed confidence over forming the next Government and claims he has good relations with incumbent President Maithripala Sirisena.

“I will be contesting the parliamentary election with a view to forming the next Government,” Rajapaksa has told India’s Rediff.com senior contributor Nitin A Gokhale in an interview.

In response to a question about how he would be working with Sirisena who was a Minister under the Rajapaksa regime, Mahinda’s response was: The position of prime minister is now different to what it was before the 19th Amendment to the Constitution was passed. The PM has a certain defined role to play. I do not see any problem at all in working with President Sirisena in that capacity.

Commenting on his relationship with Sirisena, former President said: “I maintained good relations with him during and after the presidential election. Going your separate way at times is a part of politics. President Sirisena and I have been members of the SLFP for decades and we both want to see the SLFP remaining united.”

When asked for his views on the six months of the interim government, Rajapaksa’s response was: “The past six-month period can in fact be described as the worst period of economic failure in our post-independence history. We have had unsuccessful and reckless economic management in the past, but never of this magnitude.” With regard to focus of his election campaign, Rajapaksa said the three main priorities were - to put the economy back on track, to dismantle the Police State apparatus set up by the UNP Government and to restore democracy and to deal with threats to our sovereignty and national security that have arisen since January this year.