SLFP Karaka Sabha meeting at 2 places at the same time?

Thursday, 12 December 2013 

Members of the SLFP’s Samastha Lanka Karaka Sabhawa are in a dilemma after receiving two separate invitations to a meeting at 6.00 pm on December 18, which will take place simultaneously at Temple Trees and at the SLFP headquarters. 

One thousand and four hundred members of the Karaka Sabhawa have been invited to the occasion. SLFP general secretary Maithripala Sirisena, in one invitation signed by him, invites members to the meeting at Temple Trees, to be chaired by president Mahinda Rajapaksa. It was to take place at the modern, super luxury hall especially built to host dinner for invitees to CHOGM. Decorated with the best velvet carpets, furniture and light fittings especially ordered for the occasion, a hall with such super luxuries are not available even at five star hotels. However, the president has said, “Chubs in our party will heave a mean sigh if they see this hall and their evil eyes will bring doom for it.” He had ordered that the meeting should not take place there, and instead to hold it at the party headquarters or somewhere else, with new invitations printed and sent.

On his instructions, organizers had tried to locate a suitable place for the meeting at the BMICH and elsewhere, but could not find one as all had been booked. In the end, it was decided to hold the meeting at the SLFP headquarters, and the new invitations printed and sent. However, minister Dullas Alahapperuma and senior additional secretary Harsha of the Presidential Secretariat had inspected the place and reported to the president that the place was not suitable for the meeting. Thereafter, it was decided to hold the SLFP Samastha Lanka Karaka Sabha meeting at Temple Trees as previously planned, but that the carpeting, furniture, light fittings and all should be removed from the hall. The president hopes the decorations will escape the evil eyes of the SLFP Samastha Lanka Karaka Sabha.

Organizers had told him that another place can be found if the date of the meeting is changed, but the president has told them that it should be held on December 18 and on no other day, because he had been thus advised by his astrologers. Giving us the details, a senior minister said he had not seen a leader of a nation who has such heathen beliefs to the extreme. The country is being run by horoscope readers and exorcists, he said, adding that the invitation has a picture of the president looking the other way. This is a clear indication that the president does not care for the party nor he will fulfill responsibilities to the party.