Hold onto your seats, folks, because the SLPP (Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna) just got hit with not one, but two political earthquakes that have everyone buzzing.
First Tremor: The Tale of the Roaring Rohitha
Rohitha Abeygunawardena, a man who knows how to make an entrance, took center stage in this political drama. Picture this: Rohitha rolls into Wariyamankanda in Bandaragama, leading a motorcade on a motorcycle—without a number plate, mind you. Clearly, subtlety isn’t his strong suit. But the real showstopper? His announcement at the Nirmala Hotel, where he revealed the real puppet master behind his political moves—his mother! Years ago, Mama Abeygunawardena laid down the law, telling Rohitha not to bother coming home if he didn’t support Mahinda Rajapaksa. Fast forward to today, and Mama’s back with a new command: get behind Ranil Wickremesinghe or else! And just like that, Rohitha’s political strategy boiled down to a mother’s loving (and very stern) advice.
But don’t let that fool you—Rohitha hasn’t entirely abandoned ship. He was still spotted rubbing elbows with the SLPP’s top dogs at the politburo meeting, where the party was busy scratching their heads over who to back for the presidency.
Second Tremor: Pavithra’s Enlightenment
Enter Pavithradevi Wanniarachchi, the SLPP’s Treasurer, who decided to have a little heart-to-heart with her voters in Ratnapura. The result? She’s jumping on the Wickremesinghe bandwagon too! Yet, she’s still clutching her SLPP title and attending politburo meetings like it’s just another day at the office.
Meanwhile, Back at Rajapaksa HQ…
Mahinda Rajapaksa, the big boss himself, huddled up with his brother Basil for a good ol’ family chat. Just as news broke that the Supreme Court was backing the SJB’s move to kick Harin Fernando and Manusha Nanayakkara out of Parliament, SLPP district reps were pushing the brothers to give the boot to their own party’s traitors. But Mahinda, the chess master, urged patience. “Let’s focus on the election,” he said, confident that those who strayed will find their way back home (perhaps after a little maternal pep talk?).
Basil, always with an ace up his sleeve, dropped a tantalizing hint: “We’ve got our eyes on two more defectors, but I’m not naming names.” The brothers, it seems, are playing the long game. Basil rounded off the meeting with a vague promise to focus on “serving the people and protecting national assets”—whatever that’s supposed to mean in this political circus.
