President promises UNP group he will right coalition rifts

By Chathuri Dissanayake

President Maithripala Sirisena has assured a group of UNP MPs that he will ensure the resolution of conflicting viewpoints on matters of national interest, thereby minimising any rifts between the two coalition parties.

A delegation of 30 UNP backbench MPs met with Sirisena at the Presidential Secretariat last Friday to discuss current political developments, sources confirmed. The meeting had been held with the blessings of UNP Leader and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.

However, the meeting took place in the wake of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa stating his aim to topple the Government in 2017. 

Some UNP MPs accused certain SLFP members of straining the relationship between the coalition parties.

President Sirisena has also agreed to meet with the group once a month, to discuss the group’s issues and grievances, a UNP member who was present at the meeting said.

The UNP delegation also sought to gain the support of the President for the controversial Development (Special Provisions) Bill, which received stiff resistance from local politicians with seven out of nine provincial councils voting against the Bill. President Maithripala Sirisena also told the group that he would discuss matters with Prime Minister Wickremesinghe to finalise the necessary amendments to the Bill before it was represented. 

The President also told the UNP MPs who raised concerns over controversial statements made by SLFP politicians in the Government that the concerned parties had been advised against making such comments in the future.