• Party members divided on who to support, no party decision yet

The Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) has announced that in the upcoming Presidential Election, they will support a candidate who adheres to their policies and contests under their logo.

With the Presidential Election scheduled in a few months, it is learnt that opinions within the SLPP are divided. Some SLPP members express a willingness to support the SLPP-backed current President Ranil Wickremesinghe, while others have expressed the view that the SLPP should field a separate candidate.

Responding to a question by The Daily Morning, SLPP Secretary General Secretary and Government Parliamentarian Sagara Kariyawasam said that no decision has been made yet regarding whether the SLPP would support Wickremesinghe or field another candidate in the Presidential Election. He emphasised that they would however support a candidate who accepts and is ready to implement the policies of the SLPP, and who will contest under the SLPP logo.

“In the last Presidential and Parliamentary Elections in 2019 and 2020, the people gave us a significant victory. We achieved that because the public accepted our policies. When the people have accepted our policies and brought us to power, we cannot deviate from them. This time too, we will back a candidate who accepts, respects, and is prepared to implement SLPP’s policies after coming to power. The decision on who that candidate will be will be made later,” he said.

In the wake of divided opinions within the SLPP regarding their presidential candidate, Kariyawasam previously stated that the opinions expressed by some SLPP members regarding the upcoming elections are merely personal opinions. He emphasised that the party will reach a decision after conducting a comprehensive evaluation and survey of the political situation at the ground level.