Subversive agendas blocking Constitutional Council
The prospect of making appointments to the Constitutional Council which has been granted the authority through the 19th Amendment to establish Independent Commissions and appoint individuals to important positions in the country, has become chaotic.
Ceylontoday, 2015-05-24 02:00:00
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Subversive agendas blocking Constitutional Council
By Niranjala Ariyawansha
The prospect of making appointments to the Constitutional Council which has been granted the authority through the 19th Amendment to establish Independent Commissions and appoint individuals to important positions in the country, has become chaotic.
According to a reliable source the appointments process has been staggered by the fact that the representative whom the Opposition Leader should name has not yet been announced by Opposition Leader Nimal Siripala De Silva.
President Maithripala Sirisena said last week that Parliament would not be dissolved until the Constitutional Council is established.
Seven of the ten members representing the Constitutional Council should represent Parliament and the remaining three should be professionals selected from civil society.
These three professionals should be appointed with the consensus of both the Prime Minister and the Opposition Leader.
Three of the seven members representing Parliament are appointed officially through the Prime Minister, Speaker and the Opposition Leader.
Of the remaining four members, the President has to appoint one member and President Maithripala Sirisena has already appointed as his representative, the General Secretary of the Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU), Minister of Power and Energy Champika Ranawaka.
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister has appointed Minister of Justice Wijeyadasa Rajapaksa as his representative. A source close to the government said that, as the representative of minority parties, R. Sampanthan of the Tamil National Alliance is due to be appointed.
According to the 19th Amendment to the Constitution, the authority to appoint the Chief Justice, Inspector General of Police and the Auditor General rests with the Constitutional Council. At the same time the power to appoint suitable persons to the Independent Commissions has also been assigned to the Constitutional Council.
In the meantime, the Executive Director of People's Action for Free and Fair Elections (PAFFREL), Rohana Hettiarachchi, said in a statement to the media on Friday 22nd that the authorities responsible for making appointments to the Constitutional Council are not showing any interest in making such appointments.
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremasinghe and Opposition Leader Nimal Siripala De Silva should especially set aside their private agendas and take steps to appoint the members of the Constitutional Council.
Under the 19th Amendment to the Constitution, the Constitutional Council should appoint members to the following Independent Commissions:
Under the 19th Amendment to the Constitution, the Constitutional Council should appoint members to the following Independent Commissions:
The Commissions include the Independent Public Service Commission, the Police Commission, the Commission for Investigating Allegations of Bribery or Corruption, the National Procurement Commission, the Audit Commission, the University Grants Commission, the Human Rights Commission, the Delimitation Commission, the Official Languages Commission and the Finance Commission.
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