SLFP General Secretary Anura Priyadarshana Yapa yesterday said that during former President Chandrika Kumaratunga’s rule lives of thousands of soldiers were sacrificed to the LTTE and major strongholds such as Punarin and Elephant pass were ‘gifted’ to the LTTE.

“The former President claimed that she finished 75% of the war and that President Mahinda Rajapaksa picked up from there. I simply have to ask, how can a person who took one step to the front and then two steps back, finish 75% of war?”, Yapa asked. The newly appointed General secretary too was a member of the former President’s cabinet.

 The General Secretary also said that the former President was not hesitant to sacrifice soldiers to the LTTE. He added that half of the soldiers who died during Kumaratunga’s rule had to sacrifice their lives due to hunger and that alone demonstrated the failure of the former President’s administration.

 Meanwhile, Yapa also said that Kumaratunga had a ‘dream’ that the ruling party and the opposition could form a government. “It is merely a dream, both these parties bear different policies, their principles are worlds apart” he said.

Anura Yapa was appointed the General Secretary of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party following the defection of former General Secretary Maithripala Sirisena.