No conclusion after SLMC meet

Monday, 15 December 2014 00:01 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) has still not been able to reach a conclusion on who it will support at the presidential election next month. A meeting was held yesterday in Gatambe, Kandy with the participation of SLMC Parliamentarians, Provincial Council members and Local Council members.

However, following the meeting, SLMC Leader Rauff Hakeem said that the party had not been able to reach a final decision on who to support at the polls. He said that the Government had shown flexibility with regard to resolving the issues faced by Muslims and the proposals put forward by the SLMC. However, he said the SLMC was unable to decide if it could back the Government unconditionally at the 8 January presidential election and so would take more time. The SLMC had met last week as well and failed to reach a final decision at that meeting on who it would support at the presidential elections. At last week’s meeting, it was reported that there was a division among the party members on who the SLMC should support, with some backing President Mahinda Rajapaksa and others Opposition candidate Maithripala Sirisena. The SLMC had earlier had crucial talks with President Mahinda Rajapaksa and detailed to him the core issues faced by the Muslim community in Sri Lanka. The SLMC had also noted some concerns with regards to the Eastern Provincial Council and also discussed other political issues at the talks with the President. (Colombo Gazette)