Govt. claims no decision yet to hold next polls under new electoral system

Tuesday, 10 March 2015 01:35 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Contradicting last week’s statement by Cabinet Spokesperson Rajitha Senaratne, the Government yesterday said it had not taken any decision yet on holding the upcoming elections under a new electoral system. Addressing a media briefing yesterday, United National Party (UNP) Media Spokesman and Minister of Education Akila Viraj Kariyawasam said the Government had not taken such a decision or entered into an agreement, adding that it was still holding discussions in this regard.

“We are ready for the election. As promised, we will go for an election after the 100-day program and earn a mandate. Then we will either establish a National Government or a Unity Government with other political parties. Therefore, we are not ready to postpone the election. However, we are of the opinion that country’s electoral system should be reformed,” he said. Answering a question raised by the media as to whether the UNP is protecting members of the former regime, Kariyawasam denied this allegation. He added that it was the responsibility of the Government to protect all the citizens of the country but that at no point in time would they hide anybody’s wrongdoings or protect those who had committed crimes. “The UNP will never try to protect any criminals; nor do we try to take vengeance from anybody. Nevertheless, the laws that are in our country are not sufficient to take action against some of these people who have committed crimes. Therefore, we plan to introduce new laws to implement action against them. We are also seeking foreign assistance to conduct these investigations.” “People who worked against the victory of President Maithripala Sirisena are today pretending and talking as if they are the owners of the President. We look at this unfolding drama in a very neutral manner. However, our party does not have anything to say regarding such people as speaking about them is useless. Nevertheless, I would like to state that we have no intention of creating a rift within the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) and that certain SLFP parliamentarians have expressed their wishes and asked to contest at the general election under the UNP,” Kariyawasam added. Commenting on the statement issued by former President Mahinda Rajapaksa regarding the ‘International Relations Centres’ in Kankesanthurai and Arugam Bay, Kariyawasam said they were hotels and that former President Rajapaksa should not try to mislead the public.