UNP-SJB electoral pact now a non-event

• UNP to contest in alliance with parties that backed RW at Presidential election under the Gas cylinder
• Samagi Jana Sandanaya (formerly SJB)  to work out its own modalities

By Kelum Bandara

An electoral alliance between the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) and the United National Party (UNP) is now going to be a non-event, with each of them planning for different strategies to contest the upcoming General Elections, Daily Mirror learns.    

Following defeat at the Presidential Election concluded on September 21, there were attempts to unite the two parties for a broad electoral alliance in view of the General Elections. The SJB led by Mr. Sajith Premadasa insisted that UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe should step down as a condition for a possible electoral pact. It stood in the way of uniting the two parties. After that the UNP has now decided to forge ahead with the parties that backed Mr. Wickremesinghe at the Presidential Election and form a broad alliance under the gas cylinder symbol.

Accordingly, Podujana Eksath Peramuna (People’s Alliance) led by Mr. Anura Priyadarshana Yapa and the alliance led by former Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena, who is the leader of Mahajana Eksath Peramuna (MEP), will continue to remain aligned with the UNP to contest the General Elections.

A discussion was held with the Election Commission yesterday to allocate the gas cylinder symbol to the proposed new alliance, the ‘New Democratic Front’, which otherwise operates under the swan symbol.  

“We decided to contest under a common symbol. That is the gas cylinder symbol. It has to be allocated to the new alliance which we all are party to,” he said.

Mr. Wickremesinghe used the gas cylinder symbol as an independent Presidential candidate. Otherwise, it is not a symbol so far assigned to any political party by the Election Commission. Once an election is declared, a political formation cannot be registered but a new symbol can be assigned to an existing party.

Meanwhile, an SJB source said it will contest the election under the leadership of Mr. Premadasa in alliance with the parties that stood with it at the Presidential Elections.