UNP proposes postponing elections by two years

The United National Party (UNP) has proposed to postpone Sri Lanka’s two upcoming elections by at least two years. 

UNP general secretary Palitha Range Bandara made this observation while attending a press conference in Colombo today (28).

He proposed that the Presidential Election and the General Election be postponed for 2 years, through a proposal to be tabled in Parliament and that a referendum could be called if necessary. 

“Now we have to save the country from this bankruptcy and rebuild the country’s economy,” the former parliamentarian said. 

He stated that Sri Lanka has an agreement in place with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and if the said agreement is violated the country will regress back to how it was two years back.

“So, do we want to knowingly go back to that point and get ruined? Or else do we reach a common agreement and postpone both these elections for two years?”

“The President is not greedy to stay on. We are the ones asking,” he said, adding that funds should not be wasted by going for a general election at this time. 

“Postpone them both for two years. These issues can be resolved within those two years and afterwards elections can be held,” Range Bandara added.