Sri Lanka News First Latest War News Sri Lanka News Papers Hot News Breaking News Sinhala Tamil News online internet: NE Tamils may tilt the balance

NE Tamils may tilt the balance
================================================================================
Colombo News Desk CND on 19 December, 2009 02:33:00
 
In the last Presidential poll held in 2005, Rajapaksa won by a very narrow
margin, getting 4,887,152 votes as against 4,706,366 secured by his rival Ranil
Wickremesinghe of the United National Party (UNP). Wickremesinghe had been
dubbed as a pro-LTTE and pro-West politician who would divide Sri Lanka as he
allegedly tried to do as the PM during the 2002-2004 Norwegian-brokered and
West-backed peace process. Rajapaksa, on the other hand, was portrayed as a
quintessential nationalist. REFURBISHED OPPOSITION IMAGE: This time the
opposition is in a better position. Firstly, unlike Wickremesinghe, Fonseka is
an acknowledged Sinhalese- Buddhist nationalist, and is also a military hero who
defeated the LTTE. He is expected to be on the offensive, pointing an accusing
finger at Rajapaksa for corruption, nepotism, and the failure to deliver the
much-expected peace dividend. The LTTE too is not there to prevent the northeast
Tamils from voting. Besides, Tamils know that Fonseka is backed by their
favourite, Wickremesinghe.