Key political parties contradict on PC election

COLOMBO (News 1st): The upcoming Provincial Council (PC) Election should be held according to the new draft bill tabled in parliament, the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) said. A special Central Working Committee meeting will be held on 30th March to hold further discussions regarding the matter, State Minister Dayasiri Jayasekara, the SLFP General Secretary told News 1st. Meanwhile, the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) is of the view that the election should be held expeditiously, regardless of whether it is held according to the new or old system, in order to activate the operations of provincial councils, which are currently functioning without public representatives. The party agrees with any decision taken by the Cabinet of Ministers with regard to the method of holding the Provincial Council Election, Sagara Kariyawasam, the General Secretary of the SLPP told News 1st. Commenting on the same matter, the Samagi Jana Balagavega (SJB) said the majority opinion of the party is that the Provincial Council Election should be held according to the old system. The party will hold further discussions in this regard, SJB National Organizer Tissa Attanayake told News 1st. A discussion will be held on Friday (Mar. 19) between the Committee appointed to review the Local Government Election System and submit recommendations for a new election system, and the Chief Secretaries of all Provincial Councils and Local Government Commissioners. The discussion will be held at the Ministry of Local Government and Provincial Councils. The practical problems of the local government system will be inquired during the discussion, Chairman of the Committee - Secretary to the Ministry of Lands, R.A.A.K. Ranawaka said.