The ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) yesterday (3) stated that they are ready to face it if a Parliamentary Election is to be held before the upcoming Presidential Election.
It was recently reported that some SLPP members have called for early Parliamentary Election ahead of the Presidential Election.
When contacted by The Daily Morning yesterday (3), SLPP General Secretary and Parliamentarian, attorney Sagara Kariyawasam said that they are ready for any election, be it the Presidential Election or the Parliamentary Election. “Certain parties are of the view that we (SLPP) do not possess the mandate that we received in the 2020 Parliamentary Election. The only way to check it is to go for a Parliamentary Election. If it is to be held, we are ready to face it at any time.”
Kariyawasam said that the Presidential Election could only be held by the end of this year (2024) as per the Constitution, but the Parliamentary Election could be held if the President dissolves the Parliament. “We do not say that the Parliamentary Election should be held before the Presidential Election or vice versa. What we say is we are ready to face any of them at any time.”
With the Presidential Election scheduled to be held this year (2024), certain SLPP members have expressed their intention to support the incumbent President Ranil Wickremesinghe while some others are of the view that the SLPP should field their own presidential candidate. However, Kariyawasam recently said the opinions expressed by some of its members regarding the upcoming elections are only their personal opinions, and that a decision would be reached as a party after conducting a comprehensive evaluation and survey of the political situation at the ground level.
Source: Daily morning
