Tuesday, 6 August 2013 00:00
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Former UNP Deputy Leader Karu Jayasuriya yesterday denied allegations that his meeting with UNP Chief Ranil Wickremesinghe on Friday (2) was an attempt to forge a secret deal with the party leadership.
Grilled by reporters from a television station at the news conference yesterday, Jayasuriya retorted that his meeting with Wickremesinghe was an attempt to foster party unity and build trust between factions that were at war within the UNP.
“I met him for the sake of the party. Because I believe the time has come for us to unite. Look around you – the country is burning. It is crucial that the opposition unites,” he charged.
Jayasuriya said that he was not in discussions with Wickremesinghe in order to obtain positions within the party. “I have never asked for positions within the UNP. Anything I have got was given to me unsolicited. I do not need positions in order to work,” he said.
The senior politician added that he had used his meeting with Wickremesinghe in order to make a case for MP Sajith Premadasa and other MPs who are facing disciplinary inquiries.
“As a senior party member and the deputy leader of the UNP since 1995 to 2011 barring a few months, I have every right to consult with the leadership and attempt to build bridges within the UNP,” he said, in response to ceaseless questioning by reporters on his meeting with the UNP Leader.
Jayasuriya and Wickremesinghe met at a temple in Nugegoda on Friday evening.
