President assures UNP MPs govt. will serve full term

31 December 2016 02:05 pm

President Maithripala Sirisena has reportedly assured a group of UNP back bench MPs yesterday that he would see to it that the present government will continue to serve its full term despite differences between the two allies.

A UNP MP who did not wish to be named said the President made this assurance when the back benchers of his party met him at the Presidential Secretariat last evening.

“The President said whatever issues between the two government allies could be resolved through dialogue,” the MP said.

Referring to the resignation of State Minister of Local Government and Provincial Councils Piyankara Jayaratne, the President had told the UNP MPs that such issues would be resolved in due course.

The meeting between the President and the UNP back bench MPs took place just one day after some of MPs charged that a handful of ministers and the joint opposition were trying to sabotage the development programmes of the government. (Yohan Perera)