Responding to a recent statement made by Minister of Tourism Harin Fernando that the United National Party (UNP) will form a new alliance with a group of members from the main Parliamentary Opposition, the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB), SJB General Secretary MP Ranjith Madduma Bandara stated yesterday (28 February) that Fernando is now facing an issue as he is unable to return to the SJB. 

When queried by The Daily Morning referring to the above statement made by Fernando that SJB MPs are to crossover, Madduma Bandara said: “Fernando has been saying this from the time he left the SJB that a group will be leaving from here. Right now, he has the problem of not being able to come back.” 

Meanwhile, when queried by the media yesterday that Fernando and UNP General Secretary Palitha Range Bandara had mentioned possible crossovers, SJB’s Rehan Jayawickreme said: “The UNP’s Navin Dissanayake had said recently that President Ranil Wickremesinghe had, after losing the election last time, told to wind up the UNP. We don’t need to respond to people like Range Bandara who represent such political parties. Who is the donkey from Puttalam? Three nomination lists were rejected in his Puttalam electorate. He couldn’t even take care of the nomination lists properly.”

Fernando recently said that the UNP will form a new alliance with a group of members from the SJB and that the new UNP-led alliance will be unveiled within a week or two.

Fernando joined the then-Government led by former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa by taking up a Cabinet Ministerial portfolio, contrary to the SJB’s stance.