• Party Exec. Comm. & Politburo to decide 

Following various speculations that President Ranil Wickremesinghe is urged by many parties to dissolve Parliament before the upcoming Presidential Election, the ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) is yet to decide which Election – Presidential or Parliamentary - should be held first. 

When contacted by The Daily Morning yesterday (18), the SLPP General Secretary and Government Parliamentarian, attorney Sagara Kariyawasam noted that it is yet undecided whether the SLPP would furnish a Parliamentary resolution that requests the President to dissolve the Parliament as per the provisions included in the Constitution. Stating that the SLPP is ready to face any election despite what the election is, Kariyawasam also noted that the SLPP has not paid attention to the particular matter thus far. However, he stated that the decision will be made after consulting the SLPP's Executive Committee and the Politburo. “We have not decided on the matter thus far. It must be decided by the Party’s Executive Committee and the Politburo. Therefore, those two Committees will decide on the matter,” he said.

However, SLPP founder Basil Rajapaksa, in a recently televised programme, expressed certain views regarding the two said elections, and he claimed that the citizens would not cast their votes rationally at a General Election, if it was held after a Presidential Election. When Kariyawasam was queried as to whether this is the opinion of the SLPP regarding the two said elections, he said: “In my personal opinion, he (Basil Rajapaksa) is very correct. But, it does not mean that the entire SLPP holds the same opinion. It must be decided collectively,” he added.