Virtually impossible to remove Maithripala constitutionally: Dayasiri

By Rathindra Kuruwita 

It is virtually impossible to remove Maithripala Sirisena as the head of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), given the party’s constitution, and the “illegal attempts” made a section of the politburo to remove Sirisena will only paralyze the party, former general secretary of the SLFP Dayasiri Jayasekera said.

He also denied allegations made by those attempting to oust Sirisena that it would be impossible to build a political coalition while the former president is the head of the SLFP.

“Yes, there are issues with Sirisena. However, there is a lot that can be done. Party leadership is not the only thing that matters in coalition building,” he said.

Jayasekera said that when he was the general secretary of the SLFP, a coalition under the ‘helicopter’ symbol was established.

“12 parties with 35 MPs were in that coalition. It was the MPs who joined the government for ministerial portfolios that opposed this coalition. They did a lot to dismantle the helicopter coalition. If not, the SLFP would be leading a strong coalition now,” he said.

Jayasekera said that the centre left parties need to come together to counter the anti-people activities of the government.