United National Party leader Ranil Wickremesinghe yesterday extended an open invitation to party strongmen who had crossed over to the government side to return to the party in the event of a general election.
“I request those who left our party to come back, and I ask our former deputy leader Karu Jayasuriya to forget the past and come back in order to defeat the government,” Mr. Wickremesinghe told UNP members at the party’s 53rd annual convention, held yesterday.
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| Ranil Wickremesinghe |
He called on the membership to be united and strong in the face of a general election that may be held next year. The UNP leader also said his party would submit a no-confidence motion against the government in Parliament tomorrow regarding the controversial “hedging” deal the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation had entered into. If the government could not face the no-confidence motion, he said, it should dissolve Parliament and go for a general election.
“A government must instil values in the people and give them a sense of right and wrong. A country cannot go forward if its people do not know the difference between good and bad. A new constitution is needed. We are currently in the process of formulating one.”
The UNP leader said his party appreciated the services and sacrifices made by the security forces. However, the UNP was opposed to a “politicisation” of the war and violations of human rights and democracy, he said adding that terrorism should be dealt with militarily, but at the same time its root causes should be addressed to achieve a lasting peace.
Meanwhile, some of the UNP dissident members who joined the Government rejected Mr. Wickremesinghe’s open invitation. "We are negotiating with the UPFA to contest a future election under the common betel leaf symbol," UNP dissident member and Minister Rajitha Senaratne said.
He said the dissidents moved out of the UNP due to issues with the leadership and joined President Rajapaksa's government to serve the country.
Ministers P. Dayaratne and Neomal Perera, two other UNP dissidents, said they too were not in favour of returning to the UNP.
Former Deputy Leader and current Minister of Home Affairs Karu Jayasuriya however was not contactable last night.
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