18 March 2024 10:22 am
UNP General Secretary Palitha Range Bandara, in response to a query about the call for a general election,told Daily Mirror that his party believes that the Constitution should be honored first.
Bandara said the presidential poll should be conducted on a day between September 16 and October 16, this year as stipulated in the Constitution.
“We have to go for it first . We should honor the Constitution by acting with discipline and transparency. Past failures in this regard led to civil unrest even toppling the government. If we make the same mistake again , we will experience the same scenario once again . There are elements whom I refer to as jumping fish . Jumping fish are hellbent on amassing wealth by switching sides and sticking to power all the time . We should not entertain the interests of jumping fish ,” he said .
He said the parliamentary election should be conducted next year as provided for in the Constitution.
The main opposition Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) , however, said it is ready for any of the two major elections at any time of the year .
“Our party is ready for any election . However , the call for parliamentary election has now created a rift within the government,” SJB General Secretary MP Ranjith Madduma Bandara said.
SLPP stalwart Basil Rajapaksa earlier told the media that he believes in a general election ahead of the presidential election to test the true standing of each party.
Mr. Rajapaksa told Daily Mirror that this is just an idea put forth by him.