Lankan oppn may support ex-army chief

General Sarath Fonseka’s candidature for presidency as a consensus opposition contender from the newly UNF was subject to his accepting a 10-point policy statement of the Front, opposition leader and former prime minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe has said, reports Sutirtho Patranobis.

General Sarath Fonseka’s candidature for presidency as a consensus opposition contender from the newly United National Front (UNF) was subject to his accepting a 10-point policy statement of the Front, opposition leader and former prime minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe has said.

HT Image

Topping the list of 10 must-do policies is the abolition of executive presidency — the current form of governance in Sri Lanka where the President is all powerful — or substantially reducing its powers.

Fonseka, in the event he fights and wins the presidential polls, would also have to give important cabinet portfolios to the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) and the Marxists Janatha Vimukhthi Peramuna (JVP) important portfolios in the Cabinet, ensure speedy resettlement of the Tamil refugees and establish independent commissions for good governance.