Economic Development Minister Basil Rajapaksa expressed his amazement at the conduct of the opposition in the country.The influential minister, who is the brother of President Mahinda Rajapaksa, made these remarks with reference to the concerns raised by the opposition over the timeline of the next presidential election. 

He made these comments at the opening of the Presidential Election office of the UPFA in Northern Colombo at Modera yesterday. Rajapaksa leads the ruling party's strategic operations pertaining to the forthcoming election where the incumbent President will seek a mandate for his third term in office. 

Rajapaksa said that while opposition parties in other countries are clamoring for a chance to contest an election so that they can defeat the government, Sri Lanka's opposition vehemently oppose holding of elections.

He said that the opposition has still not been able to select a candidate for the election, stating that one figure w seems to appear today, only to be replaced by another the next day.

"It is like a musical chairs competition with several people and one chair. Even though the music had stopped long ago, no one dares to sit in the chair" Rajapaksa quipped. He said the government had already presented its presidential candidate and there was no confusion over the matter. 

Minister Mervyn Silva and Western Provincial Council Member Hirunika Premachandra were also present at the event.

However, Opposition Leader Ranil Wickrrmesinghe has stated that he is ready for a presidenial election while the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna raised concerns over the 'legality' of President Rajapaksa's candidature.