JR's 'Spare-wheel' story ....

JR's 'Spare-wheel' story ....

which Ranil spoke of

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremasingha has mentioned at a meeting held in Matara recently that he was the person whom JR had had kept as his 'spare-wheel' of the UNP. The Prime Minister who said that President J.R. Jayawardene had

compared the future leadership of the United National Party to a three-wheeler and had nominated Premadasa for the leadership while naming Gamini, Lalith as backbenchers; he himself was reserved as a 'spare-wheel'. After that he said, at the end the wheels on the two sides had come off and once the air of the front-wheel was released, it was he who pulled along the Party for a period of 20 years and that it nevertheless was a kind of Guinness Record. He mentioned these ideas at the meeting of various political dignitaries of the South attached to the United National Party, at the Sanasa Hall at Nupe Junction recently:

"We have been able to secure ruling-power after 11 years and have been able to walk along a background with a fresh environment. After President J.R. Jayawardene came into leadership of the United National Party in 1973 and became the leader of the country in 1977, he brought about a development in the country. Subsequently, in order to take the United National Party forward he established groups of a second class, third class and so on. He did that after thinking far ahead. After President J.R. Jayawardene he nominated Prime Minister Ranasingha Premadasa for leadership. As backbenchers he named Mr. Gamini Dissanayaka and Mr. Lalith Athulathmudali. I was reserved as a 'spare-wheel'.

Finally when the wheels on the two sides got removed, our President Ranasingha Premadasa's wheel was disinflated. The Party was dragged along for 20 years by the 'spare-wheel'. I'd like to say that it was a Guinness Record too".