The United National Party is not against the security forces being honoured. It is only opposed to the non-inclusion of General (retired) Sarath Fonseka for the event, said party General Secretary Tissa Attanayake.
The Victory Day celebration was like a wedding sans the bride. The main person to bring victory to the forces, Gen. Fonseka had not been invited to the event. Hence, on a matter of principle, the UNP decided not to attend the main function at Galle Face, said Mr. Attanayake.
However, several UNP Parliamentarians like Sajith Premadasa, John Amaratunga and Gayantha Karinatilleke attended the event and had spoken to the media as well.
On this, Mr. Attanayake said that the UNP’s decision not to attend the function had been taken at the last moment when they had come to know that General Fonseka had not been invited. The final decision could not be conveyed to all MPs individually and this had caused a communication breakdown. That was how a few UNP members were present during the event, Tissa Attanayake added.
The UNP Parliamentary Group will meet to discuss this matter and take necessary steps to rectify the communications problem and avert any such mix-up in future, the General Secretary said.
“We cannot blame anybody. The decision not to attend the Victory Day celebrations was a late decision. We have to rectify the delay in communication among party members,” said UNP General Secretary Tissa Attanayake.
