With the proposed 18^th amendment to the constitution the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) government has inflicted a severe blow to the electoral process of Sri Lanka. Since the new amendment gives the executive President the power to appoint members to the ‘independent’ commissions, including the Election Commission, CaFFE fears that the future elections will be far from free and fair.

 The reforms replace the present 10 member Constitutional Council (CC) with a five-member committee comprising the Speaker, the Prime Minister and the leader of the opposition as ex officio (by right of office ) members. Unlike the existing CC which appoints members to the seven independent commissions the new five member committee will only be consulted by the president who has the power to appoint members to the independent commissions. (Read More)

"Without implementing the Public Service Commission established in terms of the 17th Amendment, President Rajapaksa was trying to bring in an 18th Amendment that would make the Public Service Commission an ineffective body, as the President can override its decisions.

Addressing a group of public servants in Colombo, he said that President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s proposed 18th Amendment has sought to deny the protection that the Public Service Commission, if implemented, would have given harassed government employees.

Instead of implementing the 17th Amendment that would have given public servants the badly needed protection they require, public servants are tied to trees and abused by members of the Mahinda Rajapaksa government, Opposition leader Ranil Wickremesinghe said yesterday. (Read More)

Campaign for Free and Fair Election (CaFFE) yesterday charged that the proposed 18th Amendment to the constitution would inflict a severe blow to Sri Lanka’s democracy because the new amendment allowed the president to appoint members to the ‘Independent’ Commissions.

CaFFE spokesman Keerthi Tennakoon said the reforms replaced the present 10-member Constitutional Council (CC) with a five-member committee comprising the Speaker, the Prime Minister and the leader of the opposition as ex officio members but eventually the president would have the final say in appointments to the independent commissions.

“The new five-member committee will only be consulted by the president who will have the power to appoint members to the independent commissions including the elections commission,” he said.(Read More)

The UNP Parliamentary Group and Working Committee yesterday decided unanimoulsy to vote against the constitutional amendents proposed by President Mahinda Rajapaksa seeking inter alia to permit a sitting President to contest any number of times, instead of the present two terms.

Informed sources told "The Island" that UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe addressing the Parliamentay Group cum Working Committee Meeting at "Srikotha" said that he accepted President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s invitation to discuss constitutional reforms, because he was made to understand that the executive presidency would be abolished and replaced by the post of an executive prime minister answerable to Parliament.

Since Rajapaksa had not kept his word and was now intent on preserving the executive presidency for an unlimited period, there was no option but to oppose it, Wickremesinghe said pointing out that he was prepared to support any amendments to establish a people friendly constitution, but not for the perpetuation of family rule by the Rajapaksas in violation of the people’s will. (Read More)

The main opposition UNP yesterday urged the government to hold a referendum on the proposed constitutional amendments to gauge public opinion since the government had not received a mandate at the April 8 General Election to extend the President’s term.

While expressing the party’s total dissatisfaction on these proposals, UNP General Secretary Tissa Attanayake told a news conference that the ruling UPFA did not seek a mandate at the last parliamentary election to introduce such draconian constitutional reforms.

“We will take these proposals at the Working Committee meeting.   This is a step towards dictatorship,” he said.

Mr. Attanayake said the MPs should be given the opportunity to act according to their self conscience during the vote on these reforms.(Read More)

The Cabinet yesterday approved the new Local Government Elections (Amendment) Bill which provides for the conducting of polls under a mix of the present proportional representation system and the first-past-the-post system.

According to the proposals one-third of the members will be elected to local bodies under the PR system while the rest will be on the first-past-the-post system. As the law stands today, the local council heads have powers to approve the annual budgets of their councils even after they are rejected by the majority of councillors during the vote.................. (Read More)

There is one nominee by the President and another by the minority parties. However, the CC remains defunct today over a constitutional deadlock. SLMC Leader Rauff Hakeem, after the party’s High Command meeting told the Daily Mirror that he would not basically join the government, but only support it to enact the proposed constitutional changes. ............ (Read More)

Ending weeks and months of speculation, the main opposition UNP yesterday said it would announce its new leader, deputy leader and other stalwarts next week.

UNP General Secretary Tissa Attanayake said the party would be appointing a leader who could bear the task of facing the Government.

The leader will be someone who will rise against the government’s dictatorial governance, he said.According to him the party would conclude the series of meetings and discussions with key members by the end of this week paving the way for the announcements of the much anticipated appointments, he said.

The party’s Working Committee will have to finalize and approve the party leaders and only thereafter would they be made public, Mr. Attanayake said. (Read More)

The UNP’s Media spokesman Gayantha Karunathillake, when asked by The Island what his party’s position on the crossover provision was, said that theUNP could respond once the government had replied to its proposals on changes to local government election laws and how best the 17th Amendment should be implemented.