The United National Party today said that the newspaper article claiming UNP Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe had promised the Finance Ministry and the party deputy leader post to Ravi Karunanayake was a "juvenile" misinformation campaign by President Maithripala Sirisena. 

"Someone with an iota of common sense and intelligence would know that no one in the UNP would bargain for positions at a time like this. It does not require a lot of wisdom to understand who is behind this misinformation campaign, " a senior UNP spokesman said. 

The story claiming that Wickremesinghe had promised the Finance Ministry and the UNP deputy leader's post to Karunanayake first appeared in a newspaper owned by a close associate of President Sirisena. 

The story surfaced while the UNP MPs were preparing to present a confidence motion in Parliament in support of Wickremesinghe on December 12. 

The UNP claims Wickremesinghe commands the support of 117 MPs in the House.