The United National Party has decided to support the JVP's motion to abolish the Executive Presidency.

Speaking in Parliament today, JVP MP Nalinda Jayatissa said the developments after October 26 demonstrated how a mentally handicapped man could destroy a nation with the Executive Presidency. 

Jayatissa said Dr. N.M. Perera's fears about Executive Presidency, which he expressed in 1978, had come true. "This is why he proposed the 20th Amendment to the Constitution recently," he added.

The UNP, in a tweet, expressed support to the JVP's proposal and invited all political parties to support the reform. 

The UNP, the TNA and the JVP currently have the support of 126 MPs in Parliament. They still need the support of 24 MPs to secure a 2/3 majority required to proceed with the constitutional reforms. 

There is also a possibility that they will have to seek a direct mandate from the public by way of a referendum before abolishing Executive Presidency. 

A senior UNP Parliamentarian, however, stated that the party is determined to fully abolish the Executive Presidency before the end of the current Parliament's term.