President and Opposition leader meet : Consensus on ensuring free and fair election

President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga who held talks with Opposition Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe yesterday has stressed on the need to ensure a free and fair poll at the `upcoming Presidential election'.

A communique issued by the Office of President said that the talks were held in a `cordial atmosphere' at the President's House and they both had focused attention on several matters of national importance.

The communique further said that both the President and the Opposition Leader had agreed that all political parties should work together top achieve permanent peace.

While stressing the need to ensure the holding of a free and fair Presidential election, they both have agreed on the measures that should be adopted for this purpose.

At this meeting the President has informed the Opposition Leader that the Cabinet has taken a unanimous decision to present the budget on November 8 and had however said that she would discuss the reasons given by the Opposition Leader objecting to the presentation of budget on November 8, the communique added.

The text of the Communique:

President Chandrika Kumaratunga yesterday (today) met the Leader of the Opposition Ranil Wickremesinghe in a cordial atmosphere to discuss several mattes of national interest. Mr. Wickremesinghe had written to President Kumaratunga when he sent her a copy of his election manifesto soon after he presented it to the country last month, wherein he proposed to have a meeting with the President to discuss his proposals for the resolution of the ethnic question.

The said proposals were discussed at length. They both agreed on the importance of all major political parties working together in order to resolve the country's most troubled issue, that of war and peace.

The President also stressed on the need to ensure a free and fair poll at the upcoming Presidential Elections.

Measures that could be adopted for this purpose were discussed and agreed upon. As a first step President Kumaratunga is to invite the main candidates and their representatives to meet regularly with her, together with all relevant officials and review measures that need to be adopted to ensure a free poll in the North and East and the rest of the country.

The Leader of the Opposition expressed his party's objection with regard to the proposed presentation of the budget by the government one week before the Presidential Election.

President Kumaratunga informed Mr. Wickremesinghe that her Cabinet has made a unanimous decision to present the budget on the 8th of November. However she said she would discuss the reasons given by Mr. Ranil Wickremesinghe for his party's objections to this decision.