President Mahinda Rajapaksa has indicated that the next parliamentary elections could take place in about ten months, well informed sources said.

The president has discussed the possibility when he had recently met with Lakbima publisher, Thilanga Sumathipala, at Temple Trees when Sumathipala received the appointment as chief SLFP organizer for Borella electorate.

Sumathipala yesterday told The Sunday Island that the President wanted him to enter Parliament through the Borella electorate. It would be a challenging task, he said, expressing confidence that he could secure the electorate for the ruling coalition at the next election.

The UNP won Borella by 2,044 votes at the April 25 elections to the WPC. It was one of the five Colombo electorates won by the UNP with others being Colombo East, Colombo West, Colombo Central and Colombo North.

Sumathipala who switched allegiance to Rajapaksa shortly after the last presidential election succeeded Bharatha Lakshman Premachandra, a former Colombo district SLFP MP and a presidential advisor, as the chief Borella organizer.

Responding to our queries, Sumathipala said that the president felt it would be worthwhile for the high profile businessman enter parliament rather than being restricted to a provincial council for five years. He denied that he sought the Borella electorate.

The President also appointed R. Duminda Silva as chief SLFP organizer for Kolonnawa electorate previously nursed by Nawalage Bennet Cooray. Political sources said that Cooray had succeeded former UNP stalwart Gamini Dissanayake’s younger son, Mayantha, as the SLFP organizer for Colombo West.

Cooray, an experienced politician and the Chairman of the Real Estate Limited has been also tasked with organizing Colombo East.

Mayantha Dissanayake became the SLFP’s Colombo West organizer in February 2007.

Political sources said that the SLFP was likely to explore ways and means of improving its performance at Colombo Central and Colombo North at the next election.

Silva and Sumathipala who topped the Colombo district preference vote taking the first and second slots in a close finish are expected to continue as WPC members until they receive nominations for the next parliamentary elections.