Next Lankan President will be powerless, all powers will be with Prime Minister, says Sirisena
Posted on September 3rd, 2019
Courtesy NewsIn.Asia
Colombo, September 3 (newsin.asia): Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena has asked members and supporters of his party, the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), to form an SLFP government in 2020 when parliamentary elections are held, and added that in the next government the President will be stripped off his powers and all power will be handed over to the Prime Minister as in a parliamentary form of government.
Addressing the SLFP Convention held to mark the 68 th., anniversary of the Party at the Sugathadasa Indoor Stadium in Colombo on Tuesday, Sirisena said that in accordance with the 19 th., constitutional amendment, the next President will be powerless. Defence Ministry too will be with the Prime Minister, he added.
Therefore, more than thinking of the next Presidential Election, the SLFP should pay attention to electing the next Prime Minister,” he urged.
Sirisena pointed out that the entire political system has become corrupt, dishonest and immoral.
Our responsibility is to build a political force which is pure, incorrupt, people-oriented and ethical to oust the current governance of the corrupt, elitist and anti-people groups,” the Lankan President said lambasting the government headed by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.
Patriotism is the last refuge of the scoundrel as evident from the actions of some politicians, Sirisena said, and urged the people to properly study to understand who is the political leader suitable to lead the country.
President Sirisena spoke about the problems he had to face within the government.
I fought within the government to prevent corruption, robberies and malpractices and to safeguard the interests of the people. Bank robbers and the corrupt should leave politics. All the documents are ready for the extradition of (former Central Bank Governor) Arjuna Mahendran. Documents are also ready to punish political leaders responsible for the bank scam,” he said.
The President said it is unfortunate that the Provincial Councils have become ineffective.
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe is mainly responsible for preventing Provincial Council polls from being held,” the President said and pointed out that the Prime Minister failed to present the Review Committee Report for reactivation of the Provincial Councils after the Bill was defeated in Parliament.
The President said that the government and opposition leaders hold discussions with the Northern leader (former Chief Minister C.V.Wigneswaran) purely to get Tamil votes.
But nobody has a genuine plan. They are only thinking about the number of votes in the North of the country. It’s a tragedy.”
President Sirisena said that we should achieve a balanced development and the development process must be sustainable and an efficient. He also said that the country must move towards a green economy and use smart technology.
‘Even though whatever allegations were levelled against me for the past five years of my tenure, I was committed to building a corruption-free country as well as ensuring democracy’ the President.
He said the neo-liberal concept is not suitable for Sri Lanka.
During my tenure, I was able to ensure maximum freedom and democracy in the country. As I said earlier, not a single civilian was targeted by the guns of the State apparatus. I am proud to state that no media institute or a house was burnt down, no journalists were threatened,” he said.
We should create a country where every community can live in peace and harmony without any fear of intimidation. It is the duty of the citizen to build a strong force against corruption. Democracy in this country prevailed due to people’s resistance,” said the President and added, We must gather ourselves to build a broad national movement based on our indigenous values.”
SLFP Senior Vice President Nimal Siripala de Silva, Prof Rohana Lakshman Piyadasa, UPFA General Secretary Mahinda Amaraweera and SLFP General Secretary Dayasiri Jayasekera also addressed the gathering.
Former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga, former Prime Minister D M Jayaratne, Ministers, Parliamentarians, leaders of political parties, ambassadors and SLFP members and supporters were present on this occasion.
September 4th, 2019 at 2:53 pm
The Chief Thief Rani Wikunanasinghe moves to maintain and preserve his Parliamentary power base even after the Presidential Election!
He was APPOINTED by the President, he should be DISMISSED from his PM post by the NEW President!
RELIEVED of his FORSAKEN DUTIES after the Presidential Election, he should pack his bags AND GO HOME to CONTEMPLATE his NAVEL until the General Election!
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PM explains responsibility of parliament after presidential elections
Sept 04, Colombo: Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe says that whether or not the parliament will be dissolved after the presidential election is a matter for parliament to decide and if the assembly wishes to be dissolved it can be done only with the concurrence of the parliament.
The Premier made this remark in response to a query raised by MP Bimal Ratnayake whether the government will present a Budget for the year 2020 or a Vote on Account to the country and whether it could be misappropriated.
�Today, Parliament has the power to dissolve Parliament. If the Parliament wants to be dissolved immediately, it has to be done with the concurrence of Parliament. This is a decision to be taken by the party leaders and parliament. Whether or not the parliament will be dissolved after the presidential election is a matter for parliament to decide.”
Speaking further, the Premier said a debate on the economic situation of the country can be held in the House.
“After the Easter Sunday attacks, our income was down. The hope is to increase the primary surplus. We try to close the gap and go to surplus. Then the costs can be controlled. The Cabinet of Ministers has decided not to present the 2020 Budget in Parliament under the normal procedure in 2019. The decision was taken because traditionally, presidential elections are held in November and December, and no budget has been presented yet. This does not cause income misappropriation. All this year’s money is spent under the appropriations bill that has just passed. Fuel expenses will be according to this budget until December 21. ”
He said the funds allocated by a Vote on Account must be spent in accordance with the rules and regulations of the country. New projects are not included in the Vote on Account.
He also said if a government misuses money for elections, the Elections Commission can inquire into that and issue orders.
September 4th, 2019 at 8:23 pm
What Ranil says is true but Sirisena is wrong. The president is still the head of state and appoints ministers.
The only complication arises is during the short period from November 2019 to February 2020. Thereafter the president can dissolve parliament and get a parliament he/she can work with. However, as the next government will not be a UNP-SLPP “national government” the number of ministers will be restricted to 30. It will be very difficult to run a government without jumbo Cabinets. The next regime will be very unstable.
The next president will try to remove 19A but he/she will be unable to do it without 2/3. Very unlikely SLPP can win 2/3. The choas from November 2019 to February 2020 (explained below) will dampen its prospects.
All hell will break loose during the short period from November 2019 to February 2020. UNP will disrupt the president’s budget, bring no confidence motions against the next president, the PM and the defence minister (who must be a MP) and any other minister outside the UNP.
The president can prorogue the parliament in an ordinary situtaion but he will be unable to do so in that time because the parliament is essential to run the country as all provincial councils would have ended.
Therefore, the short period from November 2019 to February 2020 will be extremely chaotic. Sadly that is the most profitable tourist season which will further affect the economy.
This choas is very good for Nagananda’s party to increase their parliamentary seats and push their agenda for a new workable Constitution. The existing constitution is now a total mess.