JO reiterate their strength in Parliament | Daily News

JO reiterate their strength in Parliament

The Joint Opposition will step up its calls to recognise them as the largest group in the Opposition in Parliament this week, Joint Opposition Parliamentary Group Leader Dinesh Gunawardena said.

Speaking to the Daily News yesterday, he said the Joint Opposition along with the ‘SLFP Group of 16’ will press Speaker Karu Jayasuriya asking to recognize them as the largest group in the Opposition and give them the due official rights including the post of Leader of Opposition.

MP Gunawardena said a written communication in that regard will also be submitted to the Speaker this week. He said a final decision as to whether they function as an independent group was yet to be made.

“We altogether have 70 MPs. Ours is much more than the TNA and the JVP put together. It is high time the Speaker accept the principles of democratic Parliament procedure,” he said. The Speaker had previously declined to recognise the National Freedom Front led by MP Wimal Weerawansa as a separate group in Parliament.

The Speaker then said Parliament can only recognise the six parties, the UNP, UPFA, ITAK, JVP, EPDP and SLMC that contested at the General Election on August 17, 2015. 


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