Vasu in hot water

   
Presidential Advisor and Opposition Leader of the Colombo Municipal Council (CMC) is in hot water over his dissent against the forcible eviction of residents in Slave Island, political sources said yesterday.

The sources said he may be under fire against his decision to walk out of the CMC sessions protesting against the eviction of occupants of unauthorized structures in Slave Island recently.

Mr. Nanayakkara staged a walk out of the CMC sessions with the SLMC, UPF and WPF members protesting against the eviction of people in Slave Island for the SAARC summit.

UPFA Councillor Ariyaratne Wedage who slammed Mr. Nanayakkara at the sessions after he staged a walk out said the latter had been carrying tales to the President Mahinda Rajapaksa. Mr. Wedage charged that Mr. Nanayakkara had told the President that he (Mr. Wedage) is destroying the UPFA. However Mr. Wedage said President had not believed Mr. Nanayakkara as he had not questioned him on the matter to date.

“We are the real party men and not the ones who joined the party recently,” he further said.

Mr. Wedage questioned as to where Mr. Nanayakkara was when the UNP regime demolished shanties and gave houses only to its party men. “I am one of the persons who fought against it while some were silent,” he added.

However Mr. Nanayakkara scoffed at the reports stating that he had no problem with the President as he had explained everything to him, especially on the forcible eviction of the Slave Island dwellers. He said he had met the President after the CMC sessions.

“I blamed the President and told him that injustice had caused to the Slave Island shanty dwellers as he had got advice from the wrong people,” he said.

He said the President had advised him to discuss the issue with the Minister of Urban Development Dinesh Gunawardene. Mr. Nanayakkara said he had met the Minister on the advice of the President and moves are underway to bring the Slave Island people to Dematagoda where permanent houses are being built for them.

He said supporting the President is not becoming his ‘Yes’ men but to put him on the right track.