Govt., has made trade unions unstable - UNP

By Jayashika Padmasiri
The United National Party (UNP) yesterday called on all trade unions to join hands with them to put an end to the government’s clandestine moves to disable trade unions around the country.

UNP MPs Johnston Fernando and Ranjith Madduma Bandara alleged that the government had already begun in preventing trade unions from exercising their rights, while in the same process had made them unstable.

Fernando said the government had failed to keep up all the promises it made to the public during election times and it is now engaged in a process to disable trade unions.

He noted that every trade union was facing problems today. All unions representing teachers, electricity board, harbour and other unions were protesting against the government, but the government, without facing these issues directly, was trying to solve them by taking these unionists to courts.

“If every problem is sent to the courts, the way it is done now, then why do we need a government at all? This is the sad state of affairs,” they noted.

Fernando also said that the UNP would come to power during the right time as they did in the year 2001. “We will have an election when we want it, at the right time. The President, or any other minister doesn’t have to teach the Opposition Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe how he should act. We will topple the government during the right time and come to power,” he said.