Presidential body blow, Anuradhapura counterblow, and the bond scandal that won’t go away
by Rajan Philips-July 18, 2015
The scores seem to have become even at the end of a tumultuous first week after nominations. To go back to the week before –the UPFA scored first by hijacking and announcing the Rajapaksa candidacy supposedly premised on a ‘historic unity’ between Maithripala Sirisena and Mahinda Rajapaksa candidacy. The real threat of a Mahinda return galvanized the yahapalanaya forces to come together after months of infighting into a new United National Front for Good Governance. Then on Tuesday came the Sirisena thunderbolt – that was every bit a body blow to the UPFA/Rajapaksa campaign, save for the left handed bond swipe at Ranil Wickremesinghe over the Central Bank scandal.