Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa has announced that the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) and the United National Party (UNP) will work together, accusing the government led by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake of attempting to weaken democratic institutions and concentrate power under a single party.
Premadasa made the remarks while addressing a discussion titled ‘J.R., Governance and the Middle Path’ held at the National Library and Documentation Services Board Auditorium in Colombo on Thursday (17). The event was organised by the Alumni Association of the D.S. Senanayake Political Academy, and former President and UNP Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe also attended.
Premadasa said the cooperation between the SJB and UNP was not aimed at securing positions, privileges or personal benefits, but at building a policy-based political alternative.
He said the proposed cooperation would be based on a progressive and people-oriented policy framework drawing on the political and economic philosophy of former President J.R. Jayewardene. He described this approach as combining a market economy with social welfare and social democracy.
Premadasa said Sri Lanka was facing a critical juncture and that the two parties should work around a common programme to address the country’s economic and political challenges.
He also claimed that between 30% and 40% of the population was facing severe poverty and that many micro, small and medium-sized enterprises were experiencing difficulties. This figure was presented as Premadasa’s claim and is not stated here as an independently verified statistic.
However, no formal announcement was made at the event regarding a legal merger of the two parties, a specific electoral agreement or a leadership structure.
