UPFA gears for polls

A nine-member high powered steering committee has been appointed by the United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) to carry out its political campaign at the forthcoming Sabaragamuwa and North Central Provincial Councils, sources said.
President Mahinda Rajapaksa has appointed this special committee which Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickremanayake will lead. The other members were Ministers Maithripala Sirisena, Susil Premjayantha, Nimal Siripala de Silva, Anura Priyadarshana Yapa, Dallas Allahapperuma, A.H.M. Fowzie and Parliamentarian Basil Rajapaksa.
Informed sources said that the committee was tasked to organize all the activities in connection with the PCs polls.
It is also learnt that more Parliamentarians and Provincial Councils members had been also asked to assist the new committee.
Meanwhile, the UPFA has decided to give nominations to all the members of the previous Sabaragamuwa and North Central Provincial Councils, at the forthcoming PC polls.
Sources said that the decision to name earlier members of the two PCs had been taken by a Party’s committee appointed to make the nominations from the party.
They said that all the members had been summoned to Colombo on June 24 to Colombo to discuss matters further.
The two Provincial Councils were dissolved early this month by the two respective Governors. Later the Elections Department announced that the nominations will be accepted between June 27 and July 4.
The date of the elections will be announced later.