UNP to take on new face after party reforms -Tissa

by Rashomi Silva

COLOMBO: The United National Party yesterday claimed that the party will soon assume a new face with the completion of long waited party reforms, hopefully before it celebrates its 60th anniversary.

Party Deputy Secretary Tissa Attanayake said the blueprint of the reforms was presented before the Political Affairs Committee early this month and was discussed extensively at several meetings thereafter.

"We have almost concluded our deliberations," he said referring to the process of decision making in the party reforms. However he said since the process was not yet complete he can not make any detailed statement.

We are scheduled to meet again next Tuesday and hopefully by then we would have completed the entire process he said adding that in a party such as the UNP with a large vote base and membership it was difficult to make overnight changes.

"We want to make the party a more people-friendly one and to increase our vote base," he said. He hinted that among the changes contemplated were the appointment of new District Organisers.

He said the committee engaged in decision-making has agreed to allocate responsibilities to different party members.

Attanayake also said that some of the members who were on the verge of crossing over to the Government were now reconsidering their decision.

Commenting on the North-East issue Attanayake asserted his party support to the Government in its effort to solve the crisis. We have already pledged our support for a political solution based on federalism and that is what the international community too expects from us. He said it was now up to the Government to come to an agreement with their partners in order to find an answer.