UPFA to attend parliament session; galleries reopened

The Parliament is scheduled to convene, for the first time following the swearing-in of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, at 1.00 p.m. this afternoon.

Reportedly, the members of United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) that had boycotted several parliamentary sessions during the past couple of weeks have stated they would participate in today’s session.

An adjournment motion will be taken up for debate during the Parliament session today (Dec. 18).

Meanwhile, the meeting of party leaders has been scheduled to commence at 12.00 p.m. this afternoon at the parliament complex.

The Office of the Speaker stated that a decision concerning the positions of the Leader of Opposition and the Chief Opposition Whip would be reached at the party leaders’ meeting.

The public gallery and the Speaker’s special guest gallery will be reopened under certain conditions, the Office of the Speaker further said.

The Parliament was last convened on the 12th of December.

Meanwhile, it was reported that Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and the ruling party have been assigned seats in the Chamber on the right side of the Speaker.

As the Cabinet of Ministers has not yet taken oaths, the seating arrangement of the Chamber has been made in accordance with the seniority of the members of Parliament, the Speaker’s Office added.

Sergeant-at-arms Narendra Fernando said a discussion headed by Speaker Karu Jayasuriya regarding the seating arrangement was held yesterday.

As the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) has decided to sit in the Opposition, new appointments with regard to several positions of the Opposition has to be made, the Speaker’s Office further said.

Reportedly, TNA Leader R. Sampanthan and JVP MP Anura Kumara Dissanayake will lose the portfolios of Opposition Leader and Chief Organizer of the Opposition, respectively.