UNP MP Ravi Karunanayake yesterday set the stage for another controversy asking the party leadership to stop the party reforms.  

Addressing the meeting which was organized by the Kotte UNP Bala Mandala to felicitate Provincial Council Member Shiral Lakthilaka last evening Mr. Karunanayake said there was no need for selecting suitable persons through a ballot but called for selecting them on the seniority basis.

“Put the party reforms aside,” he told reforms committee member UNP MP Kabir Hashim who was also present at the meeting.He also called for the setting up of council of leaders to take care of the party. (Read More)

United National Party (UNP)-affiliated National Lawyers Association Secretary Gunaratne Wanninayake is reported to have told the party’s reforms committee yesterday that it was essential to have a leadership change if the party was to win at elections.

According to highly placed party sources Mr. Gunaratne had said the party had forgotten the ‘yellow robe’ and ‘Dharma Chakra’, and this was a major reason for the repeated election defeats suffered by the UNP during the past 15 years. (Read More)

Charging that the appointment of the ‘Lessons Learnt Truth and Reconciliation Commission’ was a sop offered by the  Government to please the international community, the main opposition UNP yesterday said it should not suffer the same fate which the Udalagama Commission suffered in the recent past.

UNP MP Lakshman Kiriella told a news conference yesterday the Government should take action on the findings of this present commission which is headed by former Chief Justice C. R. De Silva if an international probe is not needed. He made this point referring to the statement made by External Affairs Minister G. L. Peiris who said on Tuesday that an international probe is not needed.

He dismissed the claims made by the Government that Lessons Learnt Truth and Reconciliation Commission is similar to the Truth Commission of South Africa stating that even former President of that country Nelson Mandela went before it and made confessions that he too had committed some offences in liberating South Africa from the whites. He said the then president of South Africa F. W. De Klerk also went before it.(Read More)

UNP provincial councillors yesterday rejected the proposal for electing party leader through a secret ballot in the absence of consensus. During a meeting between over 100 councillors and a committee headed by Joseph Michael Perera, MP to spearhead changes to the UNP constitution, at Sirikotha, members emphasised that any move to elect the leader would be detrimental to the party.

Sources told The Island yesterday afternoon, councillors had requested that the post of party leader should not be contested under any circumstances, though interested parties may push for a secret ballot. (Read More)

UNP General Secretary Tissa Attanayake and UNP MP Palitha Range Bandara continued their dispute, with Mr. Attanayake sending a hard hitting letter to Mr. Range Bandara.

Mr. Attanayake, in his letter, had dismissed the allegation made by Mr. Bandara to the effect that Mr. Attanayake was deliberately delaying disciplinary action against the provincial council member who had allegedly assaulted him.  

Mr. Attanayake also said that he had dealt with the issue impartially.

He said that he had called for a report from Mr. P. Herath, the Additional District Manager of the Puttalam District, on his own initiative and not at anyone’s instigation.(Read More)

The constituent parties of the UPFA expressed differing opinions on the proposed constitutional amendments which were discussed at the meeting of the party leaders yesterday.

Informed sources told Daily Mirror that the left parties had briefed the President on their stand regarding the Executive Presidency. The left parties had called for the abolishing of the presidency after President Rajapaksa completed his terms, and to limit the number of times a person could hold the presidency to two. It was reported that the President had listened attentively to all the different views expressed by the party leaders. (Read More)

The UNP said yesterday that it would welcome suggestions on ways and means of reforming the party, from anyone who is interested in the party -- including the general public.

UNP MP Gayantha Karunatilleke told a news conference last morning that the party would welcome suggestions from anyone who is interested in reforming the party. Hs said those who wished to offer suggestions could come to ‘Sirikotha’ (the party headquarters) and discuss their ideas with members of the Reforms Committee or, alternatively, hand over written suggestions.

He said this decision had been taken because of the great enthusiasm shown by various groups over party reforms 

The Reforms Committee will also call for suggestions from various associations affiliated to the party. Accordingly, suggestions would be called for, today, from several groups -- including provincial council members, district managers and the National Medical Officers’ Association. (Read More)

UNP Puttalam District MP Palitha Range Bandra repeated his accusation that there was a move by certain UNPers to delay taking disciplinary action against the PC member who had allegedly assaulted him. He charged that the party had failed to respond to the letters sent by some party members in the district regarding the incident.

He made this point in a letter addressed to UNP General Secretary Tissa Attanayake yesterday. Mr. Bandara was replying to the statement of Mr. Attanayake that the latter did not have the authority to take disciplinary action.(Read More)

The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) says it will contest the Northern Provincial Council election and capture power in that council in order to bring an end to the woes of the people who have been recently resettled in the Wanni.

Economic Development Minister and Senior Presidential Advisor Basil Rajapaksa while speaking at a gathering of security forces personnel on Friday said the election for the Northern Provincial Council would be held soon followed by the Local Government elections in the province. Responding to a question put to him by a journalist in this regard, the TNA parliamentarian, P. Ariyaneththiran said his party had to capture power in the Northern Provincial Council if the woes of the Wanni people are to be brought to an end.“We toured various parts of the Wanni and visited the resettled people last week and saw for ourselves the difficulties faced by those people” he said.He alleged that the picture that was given by the Government to the international community in the name of resettlement was rosy but the situation was totally different. (Read More)