Speaking to Asian Mirror, the UNP Parliamentarian said the fake Facebook profile had sent messages to various parties after the incident with North Western Province Chief Minister Dayasiri Jayasekera. 

 

"The person who pretends to be Harin Fernando had said I behaved in that manner because I had a mental illness. A lot of people confused the fake profile with my real Facebook profile. I had to personally contact those parties and clear the air on the matter," Fernando said. 

 

Meanwhile, the UNP Parliamentarian posted a status update on his official Facebook profile this morning cautioning Facebook users of the "fake profile". 

 

"Other than my Facebook profile and this fan page, I do not maintain any other profiles/groups/ pages in Facebook. This is my official Facebook page. 

Please do not get distracted by rumors, false stories published in any other media. All official notices to public will be published through the page or my FB profile. 

There are lots of activities planned to destroy my public image hence destroy and weaken the campaign.

I need your fullest support to conquer all obstacles and achieve our ultimate motive," Fernando said.

 

He also said that this propaganda campaign took off the ground in a context where his name had been proposed as the Chief Minister candidate for the Uva Provincial Council election.