SLMC, SLFP jointly seize EPC, want TNA to follow suit

The Sri Lankan Muslim Congress (SLMC) led by Rauff Hakeem has seized the governance of the Eastern Provincial Council (EPC) with the backing of the SLFP. Fearing a possible TNA-UNP alliance in the future, the SLMC has offered the post of chair and a ministerial portfolio at a meeting that took place in Colombo on Sunday, informed TNA sources told TamilNet.

TNA's Parliamentary Group Leader R. Sampanthan and TNA's appointed parliamentarian M.A. Sumanthiran have miserably failed to secure a proper deal with the new government in Colombo with which they claim to have good rapport, the TNA councillors who attended the meeting in Colombo told TamilNet.

In the meantime, Mr Sampanthan has accused Mr Hakeem of betrayal.

Neither Sampanthan nor Sumanthiran were present at the meeting that took place at Hakeem's residence on Sunday.

The TNA councillors, who were present at the meeting, who were given the SLMC offer, said they wanted to discuss the matter with the TNA leadership before arriving at a final decision.

The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) got 30.59% of the votes while Maithiripala Sirisena's SLFP, having Tamil and Muslim splinter groups and paramilitary elements in the UFPA alliance under Rajapaksa, had secured 31.58% of the votes in the 2012 elections. The SLMC, which got 20.98% of the votes has now seized the control of the EPC, leaving the TNA and the UNP (11.82%) away in the opposition.