Moragoda resigns from Political Affairs Committee

COLOMBO: Colombo District UNP Parliamentarian Milinda Moragoda has tendered his resignation from the Party's recently constituted Political Affairs Committee on the basis that the said Committee was a dysfunctional entity serving only to the detriment of the party. In a letter to UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe, the MP states:

"I write to tender my resignation from membership of the recently created Political Affairs Committee to which you were kind enough to appoint me.

"As you are aware, the principal organs recognized by our Party's Constitution are the Executive Committee, the Working Committee and the Parliamentary Group.

At the insistence of a few members, you created a Political Affairs Committee on an ad hoc basis to provide an alternative forum for the discussion of issues with a view to their resolution. Unfortunately, the composition of the Committee and the attempts by some of its members to broaden its functions, has led the Committee to become dysfunctional, and detrimental to the Party's interests.

As manifest in reports appearing in the media, the Committee has become, in fact, the means by which the public is made aware of divisions and discontent within the Party, exacerbating problems, and leading many, including myself, to question its usefulness. Sensing that developments within the Committee were not conducive to the resolution of issues, which had been your aim, I did not attend its meetings. I had hoped that, in time, a more constructive atmosphere would evolve and enable me to make a modest contribution to its work.

Regrettably, the character of the Committee has not evolved, and I am therefore seeking your concurrence to ending my membership of it. It is my opinion, and one that is shared by many, that you may need to consider whether a Political Affairs Committee continues to be of relevance to our Party's aims and purposes; or whether we should, in accordance with our Party's Constitution, seek to work through its long-established and well-tested organs such as the Parliamentary Group, and where appropriate, the Working Committee in conducting the affairs of the Party."

Yours sincerely,

Milinda Moragoda.