The Contest

• by Dr. Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu 
• - on 12/15/2014 

The announcement that Maithripala Sirisena, General Secretary of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) and Minister of Health in the Rajapaksa regime is to be The Common Candidate of the Opposition to Mahinda Rajapaksa has turned the Presidential Election of 15th January 2015 into a contest. Moreover the electoral arithmetic, most popularly quoted, appears to favour the challenger on the premise that the vast majority of minority votes will go to him leaving the incumbent the challenge of securing some 60-65% of the majority Sinhala Buddhist vote to win. This begs the question as to why there is a presidential contest at all and in the height of the tourist season, given that the incumbent’s current term expires in November 2016. Astrology perhaps, may provide the answer in terms of waxing and waning powers during this or that major or sub-period.
The Contest by Thavam Ratna