Responding to Opposition and media criticism that former Army Chief General Sarath Fonseka was being portrayed as a traitor by the government, SLFP General Secretary Maithripala Sirisena, MP said that nothing could be further from the truth. "We never called him a traitor," he said accusing the Opposition of trying to sow dissent among the military.

Addressing the media at the Mahaweli Centre, the Agriculture Minister said that those who shed crocodile tears for General Fonseka were nothing but political opportunists bent on destabilizing the country.

Minister Dallas Alahapperuma said that the country could not be deceived by phoney patriots. "We all know what they did and said not only about the then Army Chief. They also ridiculed the military effort and accused the military of extra judicial killings," he said.

The UPFA said that people would not easily forget the way a section of the media, which now plays an entirely a different tune, had covered the war against the LTTE.

National Freedom Front leader Wimal Weerawansa, MP said that the UNP-JVP-SLFP (M) combine were not so naïve to think that people would be deceived by what they were doing. Even if a good man joined the unholy alliance, he, too, would be branded, the MP said.

Minister Alahapperuma recalled some MPs shedding tears even in Parliament for LTTE terrorists killed due to security forces action. Others called for an international probe on the conduct of Sri Lankan forces as the army finished off LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakarana and his chief lieutenants.

Weerawansa said that the UNP-JVP-SLFP (M) combine had so far failed to call at least a joint press conference though they met clandestinely. He pointed out that they had called separate media briefings last week to announce retired General’s candidature at the forthcoming presidential election.

He challenged them to come on one platform with their candidate while pointing out the absurdity in their reluctance to be seen together.

Minister Alahapperuma urged to reconsider a decision to call the former Army Chief as the common candidate. "Do you think you are being fair by President Rajapaksa. Don’t you think you have been taken for a ride by Opposition strategists," a smiling SLFP Treasurer asked. While acknowledging the right of the media to stick with that term, he said that in that case President Rajapaksa should be introduced as the country’s common aspiration.

He asserted that the former Army Chief could not be even called the common candidate of the Opposition as he did not have the full support of the Opposition. He said that President Rajapaksa had the support of 15 political parties, including three independent groups in Parliament whereas the so-called Opposition had only three political parties and one SLFP dissident MP.

Minister Alahapperuma launched a scathing attack on a section of the media which he accused of playing politics. The gang had gone to the extent of propagating lies even on an hourly basis. "Some lies will last for one hour, some just five and some about 24 hours," he said recalling the anti-Rajapaksa propaganda campaign carried out by a section of the business community and the media at the last presidential polls in November 2005.

He said that today Wickremesinghe’s coalition had been greatly weakened by some of his allies switching allegiance to President Rajapaksa. The loss of CWC and Upcountry People’s Front support would be a heavy loss to the Opposition, he said adding that some of those who had been with the SLMC, another constituent of the UNP-led United National Front, were now with the President.