Elections are not on the cards until the second half of the next year, informed government sources said.
The incumbent President Ranil Wickremesinghe has told UNP stalwarts to get ready for the presidential election scheduled for the second half of the next year.
Wickremesinghe has told party men that he intends to run for the presidency through an alliance of political parties led by the UNP.
UNP internal sources reveal that Ranil Wickremesinghe has informed the leaders of the party that he will run for the presidential election in a general alliance led by the UNP.
Accordingly, a UNP spokesman told Lankasara that May Day has been planned to be celebrated this year as a stepping stone for the presidential election.
The spokesman also said that since Ranil Wickremesinghe is billed to contest as a common candidate, he will not be directly involved in the May Day celebrations.
He further stated that Samagi Jana Balawegaya, Podu Jana Peramuna, and various groups of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party have agreed to join hands with Ranil Wickremesinghe on the presidential election platform. Discussions to this effect have already been held, he said.