‘The United National Party (UNP) will face a humiliating defeat at the forthcoming Western Provincial Council elections’ said Nazeer Ahmed, leader of the Democratic Unity Alliance (DUA).

Claiming that the UNP had always baited the voters of the Western Province, particularly Colombo, Ahmed said, ‘This time the voters have a choice to vote for the Democratic Unity Alliance (DUA) which had performed well in the development work of the Colombo Municipal Council (CMC). ‘Our representatives there had always been in touch with the people explaining to them the work the party was doing for their well being’.

The DUA leader noted that the ‘UNP’s pro-West and pro-Zionist leadership has only worked to the dictates of the West who have supported Israel in its genocide and ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people’.

He noted that was not the only reason why Muslims dare not vote for the UNP. ‘The reasons are many’ nazeer Ahmed said ‘the party has hardly done any work to uplift the living standards of the Muslims, especially in areas like Colombo North and Colombo Central where the large Muslim constituency has voted for the UNP in overwhelming numbers in the past’.

He pointed out there had not been any development in schools, roads or infrastructure development even though the UNP held power in these areas for generations.

‘The numerous shanty towns in Colombo remains as insults to our collective conscience and it’s about time somebody did something to alleviate the suffering of our poor people. This DUA can do and will do as the party is represented by poor people.

"We must not forget that Sri Lanka was about the only developing country that supported George Bush’s invasion of Iraq under Ranil Wickremesinghe’s UNP. ‘Can any right thinking person ever forget this act of treachery?’ he asked.