Mr. Vasudeva Nanayakkara, the firebrand LSSP MP, Wednesday expressed clear unhappiness over the government decision to postpone the provincial council elections and said that Sri Lanka was drifting towards a "dictatorial administration."

Nanayakkara was speaking at a panel discussion on the postponement of the PC elections at which other panelists were Prof. G. L. Pieris, Mr. Tyrone Fernando and Mr. Rohan Edirisinghe of the Colombo University.

"We are frustrated. We want to leave the government but we will stay on in the PA," Nanayakkara said.

The MP who said that it was sad "this government is following the footsteps of the last government," said the PC elections had been postponed out of fear that a poor showing would influence a future presidential election.

Prof. Pieris denied that the government was postponing elections out of fear of defeat. He said that the postponement was due to security considerations. He has earlier said that these elections will be held by the end of the year.