‘Secret Pact’ Boomerangs On Rajapaksa

President Mahinda Rajapakse blew apart the ‘Fonseka-TNA secret pact’ bogey at a meeting he had with a group of English and Tamil journalists last Wednesday.
The President let the cat out of the bag when he had told the group of journalists that “most of the Tamil parties” and “many in the TNA” were supporting him but were keeping quiet because “they (members) didn’t want to divide the TNA.”
This statement quoting the President was reported in the lead story of the Daily Mirror newspaper on Friday (15).

The government and its ministers and especially the state media have been going to great lengths to portray that there was a secret agreement between General Sarath Fonseka and the TNA, whereby the General had accepted the demands of the TNA in return for their support.

Government ministers have gone on record stating that when the TNA came to meet the President with a set of demands he rejected all of them and the TNA then went to Fonseka who allegedly accepted the demands.

General Fonseka, UNP Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe and JVP Leader Somawansa Amarasinghe have all categorically rejected the accusation of a secret pact with the TNA stating no such agreement existed.

In the light of the President’s disclosure last week questions have now been raised whether Rajapakse in fact has entered in to a secret agreement with sections of the TNA having agreed to their demands behind the scenes.

It will be recalled that at the last presidential poll in 2005 when the state media was harping on a “Ali –Koti Givisuma” (UNP-LTTE agreement), LTTE Leader Velupillai Pirapaharan issued a decree calling on Tamil voters all over the island to boycott the election. This was seen as a gesture of direct support for presidential candidate Mahinda Rajapaksa whose opponent, Ranil Wickremesinghe had by then secured en bloc the Tamil vote. Wickremesinghe lost the election by 180,000 votes.

The UNP later charged in parliament that it had evidence of a secret pact Rajapaksa had with the LTTE and produced documentation to substantiate the claim.
With the state media once again harping on a ‘Fonseka-TNA secret pact’ questions are being raised if Rajapaksa has resorted to a repeat of 2005.