SLMC Amphibians Inside UNP’s Elephant Kraal
By Ameer Ali –September 15, 2015
Dr. Ameer Ali
Amphibians are at home in two or more places but are native to none of them. This has been the unfortunate saga of the SLMC since its emergence as an independent political party in the 1990s. When it originated the party leaders proclaimed that they would be the sole representatives of the Muslim community in Sri Lanka and that they would live and die for that community. But the reality was totally different. In trying win parliamentary seats, ministerial positions and wealth seeking opportunities the SLMC stalwarts were willing to sacrifice the interests of the community for personal gain. Even when they bargained for a coalition partnership the chips they bargained with were not benefits to the community but the number of ministries that the leaders would get and the power of such ministries. This was so blatantly demonstrated at the last general elections.
Which political party in the world, can someone point out to me, did sacrifice its own identity, merge completely with another, won parliamentary seats and ministerial positions, and then did go on to claim that the original party was still a force to reckon with and a fortress for its native vote bank? This is exactly what the SLMC and its parvenus are claiming in the Eastern Province. This braggadocio is risible at best and mendacious at worst.
