By Lal Wijenayake –
Lal Wijenayake
Though the constitutional crisis that arose from the conspiracy hatched between the President and Mahinda Rajapakse which brought the country to the brink of civil war has ended due to the Supreme Court interpreting the provisions of the constitution on the dissolution of Parliament, the political crisis that emerged out of it has not receded. The Supreme Court has held that the President cannot dissolve Parliament within the first four and a half years of the life of Parliament unless Parliament by a resolution passed with 2/3 majority request that Parliament be dissolved.
The removal of Ranil Wickremesinghe from the office of Prime Minister, appointment of Mahinda Rajapaksa as Prime Minister, prorogation of Parliament and, dissolution of Parliament by the President were in violation of the Constitution.
Under the Constitution the President has no power to remove the Prime Minister. Article 42(4) mandates the President to appoint as Prime Minister the Member of Parliament who in his opinion is most likely to command the confidence of Parliament. The wording “in his opinion” does not give the President an absolute discretion to make an appointment not based on the ground situation. The discretion has to be used with objectively. In any case once he uses his discretion and appoints a Prime Minister his discretion ends there.
Thereafter there is no provision enabling the President to remove the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister ceases to hold office only under the circumstances specifically set out in the constitution. The President can appoint a new Prime Minister only when the Prime Minister ceases to hold office under the constitution.
Under Article 46(2), the Prime Minister shall continue to hold office throughout the period during which the Cabinet of Ministers continues to function under the constitution.
The exceptions laid down in Article 46(2)(a) is where the Prime Minister resigns his office and Article 46(2)(b) where the Prime Minister ceases to be a Member of Parliament.
The other circumstances where the Prime Minister will cease to hold office will be under Article 48(2) where Parliament rejects the Statement of Government Policy or the Appropriation Bill or passes a vote of no confidence in the Government.
Therefore the action of the President in removing the Prime Minister and appointing Mahinda Rajapaksa as the Prime Minister is an intentional violation of the Constitution.
The next step in the process, the prorogation of Parliament is a violation of the spirit of the Constitution. The President is vested with the power to prorogue Parliament under Article 33(2)(c). This Article confers the general power of prorogation. But the purpose for which this power is vested in the President is governed by conventions. The word “prorogation’ itself in a Parliamentary system carries with it what it means. Under the British Parliamentary conventions, which we follow, Parliament is prorogued either to give the members of Parliament a recess or to clear the order paper of Parliament when it is full of motions that has not been disposed of so that the House can commence the new sessions with a clean slate. The tradition even in our Parliament is for Parliament to be prorogued on the advice of the Prime Minister.
If the power to prorogue Parliament is given a wide meaning to mean that the President can prorogue Parliament at any time for any purpose, the President would be able to make use of this power to trifle the functioning of Parliament. Such an act will violate the sovereignty of the people.
In Public law no authority is vested with absolute discretion. The discretion vested in a public authority has to be used for the purpose for which the discretion is vested. Power is vested on a public authority with the trust that the power will be used for the purpose for which it is vested in the authority. It is accepted in Public Law as the “trust doctrine.”
The President prorogued Parliament when Parliament was about to consider the appropriation bill. Obviously the President prorogued Parliament to enable Mahinda Rajapaksa to get the support of 113 Members of Parliament. How he was expected to find the numbers was reveled later by the President himself when he said that Mahinda Rajapaksa failed to show the support of 113 Members because Members of Parliament has raised their price to over Rupees five hundred million.
Therefore prorogation of Parliament admittedly was for an illegal purpose.
This again amounts to an intentional abuse of power in violation of the Constitution.
Thereafter, when the Mahinda Rajapaksa government was short of the number necessary to function in Parliament the President dissolved Parliament, This is a blatant intentional violation of the constitution. This is confirmed by the judgment of the Supreme Court.
Announcement by the President that he will not appoint Ranil Wickremesinghe as Prime Minister even if all 225 Members of Parliament request him to do so is a threat to act in violation of the constitution, as it is clearly laid down that the President has to appoint as Prime Minister the Member of Parliament who has the confidence of majority of members of Parliament. This too is an act of intentional violation of the constitution.
The President claims to be the leader of the UPFA. UPFA claims that they be recognized as the main party in the opposition and demands that Mahinda Rajapaksa be appointed as the leader of the Opposition. On the other hand the President holds three ministries Defense, Environment, and Mahaweli Development as stipulated in the constitution and has also kept under him the Ministry of Law and Order and some Media Institutions. Therefore the President is the head of the main opposition party, holds Cabinet Ministries and chairs Cabinet meetings as President. There is clearly a conflict of interest. This is a blatant violation of the spirit of the Constitution.
Therefore the President has no moral right to continue to function as the President. His continuing to hold office is an obstruction to the smooth functioning of the Government.
Therefore the President should resign from the position as President and allow the country to be governed upholding the Constitution.
nalmen / January 1, 2019
the president is never going to resign he will go on till his time is up
one should never believe what he says
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Amarasiri / January 1, 2019
Lal,
Sirisena should resign because his balls also dissolved when the parliament was illegally and unconstitutionally dissolved, confirmed by the Supreme Court.
But Sirisena won’t, because he is like a leach. Peeing on the leach will not make the leach drop. Need to take a burning cigarette butt and burn his butt, i.e. Impeach Sirisena.
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Eagle Eye / January 1, 2019
If for some strange reason President decides to join UNP to form a National Government and pave the way to TNA to get the Federal Constitution passed I am wondering what would be the reaction of these guys who demand that he should resign. Will all BLACK things change to WHITE?
Based on his erratic decision making, cannot rule out such a thing.
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JD / January 1, 2019
EAGLE EYE: HE ios negotiating for a NATIONAL LIST MP post. This is way thre4aten the leader and then he GIVES SOMETHING THAT IS WHAT EVERY ONE IS ASKING. These TRAITORS should be handed over to MRs Amirthalingam to do what ever she wants at the GALLA FACE grounds.
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Ajith / January 1, 2019
“Therefore the President has no moral right to continue to function as the President. His continuing to hold office is an obstruction to the smooth functioning of the Government.
Therefore the President should resign from the position as President and allow the country to be governed upholding the Constitution.”
It is a very good clear cut analysis of the political coup which was most dangerous than a military coup or any other coup. Unless this Nation finds a proper follow up solution to this crime there is no future for this country. UNP should not play an opportunistic politics to save those criminals who was responsible for this crime. JVP,MC and TNA can take up the legal action against those criminals but that will be used by these criminals to create a bloodbath against minorities because the criminals have the backing of the Buddhist Sinhala Fundamentalist leadership. UNP is afraid of Sinhala votes. It is up to the Sinhala community should understand that their political leadership and religious leadership mislead them using minorities as a weapon to cheat Sinhala masses for their own benefits. Unless the masses understand the real motive of their politicians, I don’t think the nation will survive for longer.
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Eagle Eye / January 1, 2019
Ajith,
“It is up to the Sinhala community should understand that their political leadership and religious leadership mislead them using minorities as a weapon to cheat Sinhala masses for their own benefits.”
This is true for Demala politicians as well. Demala politicians keep on spreading ‘Sinhala Phobia’ among Demala people so that they do not think elite Wellala feudal lords are their real enemy.
These politicians are trying hard to create the impression among Demala people that Sinhalayo as the majority are enjoying benefits that Demala people are denied. Let me ask the question:
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“What is it that the Sinhalayo are enjoying that the other communities are not enjoying because they are not Sinhala?
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Please tell us instead of just saying ‘National Question’; ‘Tamil Problem’; ‘Minority Problem’; ‘Ethnic Problem’. Then only we can tackle the issue.
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Lankan / January 2, 2019
‘Eagle’ Eye? More like Blinkered Eye!!!
Come on, open your eyes and see things for what they are..
Stop ‘fighting’ on racial lines please..Who are the Sinhalese anyway?
Another hotch potch human group bound by a common language, nothing more, nothing less!
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Eagle Eye / January 2, 2019
Lankan,
Sinhalayo are a unique race on this earth that have their own traditions, culture and language whereas the so called ‘Sri Lankan Tamils’ do not have anything on their own. Everything they possess are what the slaves brought from Hindusthan when they were illegally smuggled to this country by colonial barbarians.
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Sinhalese have much to be proud of:
• 28,500 BCE – Beads of shells, burying dead underground (Ravana Ella, Fahien caves)
• 27,000 BCE – using salt
• 15,000 BCE – agro subsistence, pollen evidence from Horton Plains for farming, use of necklaces & needles found in Embilipitiya
• 12,000 BCE – steel, copper, irrigation technology in Maduru Oya
• 6300 BCE – pottery found in Kegalle (Dorawaka-lena)
• 6000 BCE – Mahamevuna Uyana – a huge city that existed in Anuradhapura, which even used horses (bandit Vijaya arrived only in 543BCE)
• 5000 BCE – discovery of grinding stone, rough clothing, fireplace indicating origins of Mahasona beliefs (Pallemala)
• 4000 BCE – small family units increased to large settlements in towns adopting agriculture & metal
• 3500 BCE – inventing boats (water-based transport system) that could carry 150 passengers (Attanagalla Oya)
• 1000 BCE – iron (steel) technology replacing stone technology
• 900 BCE – use of alphabet
• 900 BCE – discovery of a major town extending 25 acres in Anuradhapura, by 700 BCE this area increased to 125 acres.
• 600 BCE – first Brahmi letters
• 564 BCE – Sivu-hela (Simhala) communities divided into 4 tribes
• 543 BCE – Vijaya arrived
• 380 BCE – Anuradhapura kingdom for 1400 years
• 250 BCE – Buddhism becomes state religion
• 245 BCE – bhikkhuni Sangamitta arrived with the Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi tree
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Raj-UK / January 2, 2019
Eagle Eye
Past glories of SL are irrelevant. Countries in which people were so called cave dwellers when SL had a civilisation are way ahead of us now. In the ancient world, the Hindus gave the world mathematics (significance of zero), the Chinese were in the forefront of many discoveries, the Romans were master engineers with sophisticated aqueduct systems to provide water to households & the Egyptians were master builders, so we were not the only race to have a glorious civilisation. Our million year culture & traditions have taken us no where. Do you associate the despicable conduct of our leaders as part of our culture?
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Native Vedda / January 2, 2019
Eagle Blind Eye
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What an impressive list of non-achievement though I must admit you have a brilliant creative mind.
I am not sure whether Champika or you doing well.
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“900 BCE – discovery of a major town extending 25 acres in Anuradhapura, by 700”
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Brilliant settlement or settled life becomes town.
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“250 BCE – Buddhism becomes state religion”
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Brilliant, areas controlled by tribal/clan chiefs becomes state.
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The Kallthonie Vijaya and his 700 thugs must have been super heroes.
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Rationalist / January 3, 2019
“• 3500 BCE – inventing boats (water-based transport system) that could carry 150 passengers (Attanagalla Oya)”
Eagle Eye;
How did the Sinhalayo come to an Island like this in the First Place, before they invented Boats?
Did they swim across from the Mainland of Asia, or were they dropped here by a Flying Saucer?
AND who recorded all these Dates that you List, so you could use them??
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Likeyou_Namedoesnotmatter / January 2, 2019
Eagle Eye
““What is it that the Sinhalayo are enjoying that the other communities are not enjoying because they are not Sinhala?”
Impunity my dear friend
One or two street Buddhist statues were destroyed and the Government went to town and brought the roof down. It was big news.
How many Hindu temples were destroyed in the long past. Tamils kept quiet knowing opening our mouth will bring more destruction. Tamils only whispered their anger, bitterness, fear among themselves.
Recent past many Muslim mosques were damaged and the Gnanasara idiot who wears robes were behind this. What happened? Sweet NOTHING!
Just open your eye and you will find the answer to your question.
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Eagle Eye / January 2, 2019
Likeyou_Namedoesnotmatter,
“How many Hindu temples were destroyed in the long past.”
“Recent past many Muslim mosques were damaged.”
How many temples and archaeological sites were destroyed by Demalu and Muslims?
In some instances, Hindu Kovils and Mosques have been erected on Buddhist archaeological sites. These cases are listed in a report submitted by Cyril Mathew entitled ‘An Appeal to UNESCO to safeguard and Preserve the Cultural Property in Sri Lanka Endangered by Racial Prejudice, Unlawful Occupation or Willful Destruction’, 1983.
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Vigneshwaran says ‘No Sinhalese are welcome in the North’. He wants to change the name of ‘Nagadeepa’. Shivajilingam says ‘No Sinhala settlements in the North’. Isn’t this discrimination against Sinhalayo?
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Likeyou_Namedoesnotmatter / January 2, 2019
Eagle Eye
Your side for the moment has the ‘Might’ so you are talking. ‘Might’ is not ‘right’
“Vigneshwaran says ‘No Sinhalese are welcome in the North’. He wants to change the name of ‘Nagadeepa’. Shivajilingam says ‘No Sinhala settlements in the North’. Isn’t this discrimination against Sinhalayo?”
There is a BIG difference. firstly Tamils never came to the south on a ‘State sponsored colonization scheme’. But State sponsored colonization took place for the Sinhalese in Tamil areas.
Secondly there is another BIG difference. Please understand the Sinhalese and Tamils are not on ‘equal level playing fields’. Tamils CANNOT dilute the Sinhalese. But Sinhalese CAN dilute the Tamils converting them minorities in their areas. It best you understand Tamils and Sinhalese are NOT on equal terms here. You should understand this fear in the Tamils so we have mutual respect and understanding. Then it will be best for both sides.
If you still harp on your racial bigotry Tamils will have no other choice than having to become ‘majority’ and make the Sinhala as the ‘minorities’ when only you will have a taste of your medicine! Lets amicably understand each others apprehensions and fears and be gentleman enough to avoid cornering the Tamils.
Remember this island NEVER was a ‘UNITARY’ state prior to the foreign invasion and the island was ruled having a Sinhala kingdom and Tamil kingdom. The British amalgamated both territories and called it ‘Ceylon’ for the administrative convenience. When the British left the Tamils leaders were fooled by cleaver DS Senanayalke to accept as a single country and the British gave back without ‘de-amalgamating’. So however much you may criticize foreign invasion and rule when you got entire island and then you began to call it ‘Sinhala land’ made Tamils look Kalathonis in their own territory. Yes I agree Tamils did not have visionary leaders like Ali Jinah of Pakistan and Tamils got tricked.
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Eagle Eye / January 2, 2019
Likeyou_Namedoesnotmatter,
“If you still harp on your racial bigotry Tamils will have no other choice than having to become ‘majority’ and make the Sinhala as the ‘minorities'” .
Demala invaders from Hindusthan tried to do this from 3rd Century BC and failed. Last attempt was made by megalomaniac Prabhakaran. He also faced the same fate at Nandikalal like Elara.
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‘But State sponsored colonization took place for the Sinhalese in Tamil areas.’
It is the other way around. Demalu brought to this country illegally as slaves by Parangi, Olanda and Ingirisi colonial barbarians colonized land in the North. Ancient Sinhala Kingdoms were in the North and East. Sinhalayo do not have to colonize their own land. They went back to areas that were abandoned due to Demala invasions and colonial rule.
In 1930s, British renovated few irrigation systems and offered land to Demalu but they refused to come because they were scared of malaria. Sinhalayo took the challenge and went and developed the area. Now Demalu keep on grumbling that Sinhalayo colonized their land. BS!
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Likeyou_Namedoesnotmatter / January 3, 2019
Eagle Eye
You think Tamils as a whole was brought by the British! Your forefathers are the Kalathonis sent from India as exile and because of bad characters possessed by Vijaya and his associates. Vijaya ‘married’ Kuveni and Sinhalese are their ancestry. What lies you are talking as if Tamils was brought to this island by the British. Tamils had their kingdom. Tamils fought wars. King Elara a Tamil did lose to King Duttugemunu and as his name suggests he is a bad man.
You are talking because you think ‘might’ is ‘right’. Tamils will also play the same ‘game’ when Tamils show the ‘majority’. Tamils will join with India and will call all this part of land as ‘Indian subcontinent’. ‘We’ all are ‘Indian subcontinent’. Who said this is Sri Lanka. Sinhalaese can come to any part of Indian subcontinent and live ‘equally’ so as anybody in the Indian subcontinent. Then see what happens Tamils can dilute Sinhalese anywhere. You get your own medicine.
Tamils welcome Chinese invasion into this part of Indian subcontinent. Fools no guns will be used, and now is economic invasion and the Sinhala Government will not be able to pay the loans and Chinese will take over.
Then All people living here are Sri Lankans with equal rights. They cannot differentiate the Sinhalese from the Tamils and they don’t need to all are ‘ Sri Lankans. No racial or religious favouration. Let this become China land.
If Tamils can’t live here with dignity calling and treating Tamils as second class citizens and telling Tamils were brought here by British (when Tamils had territory and lived here long before foreign invasion and lived and fought wars with Sinhala territory) Tamils will not mind destroying the whole island Tamils and Sinhala land altogether. Tamils can always assimilate in India.
There is no point talking to you anymore and wasting my time.With this I end my communication with you.
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Vanangamudi / January 2, 2019
Eagle Eye
You are a regular commentator in these pages. If you have still not
understood “What is it that the Sinhalayo are enjoying that the other communities are not enjoying because they are not Sinhala?” you have understood nothing at all. I cannot believe this. You are far too well informed for this. You are one of those of the variety that has eyes but refuse to see. Sinhala duplicity and extremism comes in various forms. Yours is one of the most despicable.
The late Ven. Sobita Thero was once an unapologetic frontline Sinhala extremist. By 2015 he, on his own, changed giving way to reason. So the ultra-nationalist JVP. Rajapakses and Sirisena are playing to the gallery trying to fool both sides – or so they think. Both will swing the way the wind blows. Political power is in the hands of the Buddhist religious hierarchy and the activist high armed forces sources. You possibly could not have failed to observe how the Rajapakses and Gamarala genuflect before both. The other source they dread is India – if you have read the signs right. Both also think they can fool the Chinese in a future Indo-Chinese struggle for supremacy of the sea lanes in our region.
Vanangamudi
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Ajith / January 2, 2019
Eagle Eye,
Since your question has no merit, you don’t need an answer for your question. Rajapakse is a Sinhalayon and Sampanthan is a Tamil. This Sinhalayo enyoys the freedom to become a President, Prime Minister, Minister, Opposition leader, his brothers have the freedom to enjoy ministerial posts, his sons to become ministers despite they are dual citizenship, despite they involved in murders, bribes, corruption, arms & drugs deals etcc but Sampanthan do not enjoy any of them despite no corruption, no bribes, no murders.
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Eagle Eye / January 3, 2019
Ajith,
“Since your question has no merit, you don’t need an answer for your question.”
What do you mean by saying it has no merit. This is the main allegation you guys raise. Instead of answering my question, probably because you do not have an answer, you come out with all kinds of nonsense. Typical Demalu.
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rbh / January 1, 2019
Why The President Should Resign.
He did not understand the following this simple clause: The President cannot dissolve Parliament within the first four and a half years of the life of Parliament unless Parliament by a resolution passed with 2/3 majority request that Parliament be dissolved.What about the internationally clauses in model of contract.
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Naman / January 1, 2019
The President is not going to resign as he wants to be a two term President. After we saw him doing illegal things on 26/10/2018, we are of the opinion that he should be impeached and the post abolished.
Ranil too should go as well
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Amarasiri / January 2, 2019
Naman,
One set of dissolved balls, and another set of totting balls, strange bedfellows, indeed!
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Nimal / January 1, 2019
Hi Eagle Eye, there is nothing wrong with the federal system of governance. It’s operating perfectly well over all the world, and India, Malaysia, Canada, US, Australia, Brazil, Nigeria etc, all of them have federal system of governance and they are thriving with it. Please stop your nonsense and fear mongering. This is how all of you destroying this good country by hoodwinking the people for your selfish greed.
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K.Anaga / January 2, 2019
If he resigns we will not have any fun- which keeps us going..
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K.Anaga / January 2, 2019
Nimal!
Unfortunately the EAGLE EYE cannot look beyond his nose unlike the real EAGLE. He is a frog in the well – well fed with algae. Leave him alone.
A fool does not Know that he doesn’t Know.
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Piyal / January 1, 2019
If he wouldn’t resign, he should be removed by whatever means for the person who violated the constitution shouldn’t allowed to stay any longer.
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K.Pillai / January 1, 2019
Lal Wijenayake recommends MS resign because……because…….because…..”.
We do not disagree Lal but…………
.
Every former Presidents, have tainted themselves with various forms of wrongdoings.
In the New Year message MS said “We must learn from our mistakes”.
Single handedly, MS has taken the flax, allowed dissent and has not resorted to WhiteVanning.
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Almost certainly an MS resignation will spark a civil war. We hope MS stays put.
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Lankan / January 2, 2019
A typically naive outlook!
This is why Sri Lanka will remain a backward nation. The citizens are oh so accommodating of criminals at worst and lame bigoted leaders at best!
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Real Revolutionist / January 1, 2019
Lal Wijenayake
Both the president & the PM are products of conspiracy so both should resign, why should only the president?
MS was made the common candidate to use UNP votes + some additional votes grabbed from SLFP to make him the president.
Thus made president had a mandatory obligation to appoint RW as the PM (he was nowhere to be the PM @ that time), with just 50 seats in the house.
Raigamaya & Gampolaya won in that way & troubles started when personal interests started to surface.
People were deceived to fall in the GG trap that gave enhanced victory for the UNP but still to make minority government in the consequent election.
The GG is no more as they’re apart now making the deceptive GG invalid too.
So resign both, people don’t want any of them.
Start undoing what was done in 2015.
Parliamentary election 1st & presidential 2nd.
No common candidates please.
(However MS still can do something for the benefit of the country).
1. See the possibility of banning racially based political parties before the next election.
2. Ban parties that can’t stand alone to face elections; in other words ban making alliances (forming sandhana)
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roger / January 2, 2019
sirisena is an idiot. He is a good for nothing fellow. He will anyway be thrown into the dustbin in the next presidential election. Ranil is also useless. UNP is at the moment gaining strength, this should be utilesed to bring in a new leader from UNP. But this selfish pariah Ranil will not allow anyone else till he dies. Either Ranil should allow someone else to take the lead which he is incapable of doing or he shold die for the country to prosper.
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Ad / January 2, 2019
Both MR and MS have intentionally violated the Constitution. The next amendment to the constitution should include that those public officers of such caliber who violate Constitution will lose their civic rights together with those of their family members. It should be retrograde and become a lesson to those violators.
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Mallaiyuran / January 2, 2019
As New King had stood as Common Candidate in the EP election and JVP, TNA and UNP campaigned for his election and SLFP placed its own candidate, campaigned for his selection then New King has no legal and ethical grounds to go to SLFP. The land’s constitution supersedes the SLFP constitution. The SLFP’s requirement of elected EP carry the Chairmanship should be ignored. The constitution says an elected MP may not change the party and if he/she does, will be considered as he/she vacated the post. This should apply uniformly across the board to EP too because he holds positions in Parliament and Cabinet. But now EP refusing to resign, after he had changed the loyalty to the parties on which behalf he stood in election.
Now 19A complicated the situation. During CBK time SLFP was able to be in the opposition. There were no specific ministerial positions assigned to the EP as in 19A. If 19A assign ministerial positions to EP, it is drawing the EP constitutionally into the government. 19A says ministerial positions was only to the incumbent, because incumbent stood election in many parties simultaneously, as none of them considered him as opposition candidate other than SLFP. This situation cannot be expected to be present in any future elections so those EPs will be assigned government’s cabinet posts. In addition to this, in order to accommodate the left out Party, SLFP, into the government, 19A introduced a new idea, the National Unity Government. Now, this has drawn all parties into the ruling. But TNA continued to support EP, SLFP and UNP, but not wanted in the National Unity government. But JVP, after supporting the CC EP in the election, stayed out of supporting anybody. But now SLFP has left National Unity government. Then it appears 19A, preferably, should have expressed that if EP join a political party from his status of CC, he would lose EP and the ministries he got assigned under 19A.
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Wansa Manage / January 2, 2019
“Why The President Should Resign” constitutional consultant Wijenayaka asks.
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As we can gusess, is that because the president is standing in the way of your Federal con-stitution?
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For heavens’ sake give up. The country will never allow your bullshit con-stitution to come in to existence. There will be a lot of bloodshed if you try.
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Raj-UK / January 2, 2019
Mr Wijenayake
Sirisena has proved himself to be incompetent, ignorant, stupid & way out of his depth as the President but he is shameless, treacherous & self serving to the extent that he will have to be physically thrown out kicking & screaming. He is either stupid or extremely conniving or both when he showed us that he was willing to do a deal even with the devil & displayed his utter ignorance of law & the constitution in public by stating that he will never appoint RW as PM, even if the entire Cabinet approved & will not stay an hour as President if RW is reappointed. Not only he shot him self on the foot several times, he had to eat humble pie. Such a person would never have been able to get even a lowly clerical job unless on a political recommendation to a Govt. job. In fact, I would be surprised if he could even conduct himself as a competent ‘gramasevaka’. Therefore, such a person governing a country would send shivers down any reasonable person. So, do you think such a person do the honourable thing by stepping down?
Looks like we are saddled with him until at least the next election. Even then, who knows what more damage he will do? Desperate men do desperate things.
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mahulchandran / January 3, 2019
Re, Recurrent and ongoing unjust situ in SL?!
Why is no one considering depriving MR & MS of their civic rights as JR’s Govt had done for Sirima? Is there not a long list of crimes listed in some CT articles & comments perpetrated against the many people’s of SL by MR and now in cohort with MS who was chosen by CBK & Co to undo and reduce MR”s damages to the body politic of SL. Did not MR win the presidency through deceit & fraud by bribing the LTTE? Did not his family, clan and relatives handle about 60 to 70 % of the SL’s finances during his horrendous primarily self-serving reign and then claiming undue and fake credit for the defeat of the LTTE which was primarily enabled by the coalition of 20 to 30 countries?
Won’t this help break up the unholy triangle of MR, MS, & RW and recreate three parallel paths? Until MR & MS too are eventually replaced by others akin to the days of Gamini Dis, Lalith Athu & Rane Preme? The political parties may be different but is not the crux of these problems similar to and with the gaudy triple egos ahead of the people’s interest? Is it not likely to metamorphose with the disadvantage of the unavailability of the LTTE to do the dirty work now in contrast to then?
Why won’t “Friday Forum” and other intellectuals and many varied activists like Ariyaratne of the Deshodhya movements do something through the highest court in the land as was the case in relation to the “Land rights” of the aboriginal peoples of Australia when both of the two main parties failed them repeatedly for over two centuries? Should not the SC of SL rise to the challenge to recreate and invent more just and appropriate laws at this crucial juncture where the rule of law and democracy is at stake? Are people for the constitution or is the constitution for a select group of greedy, corrupt and deranged politicians?
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DPJ / January 3, 2019
Who is this JD? I would like to tell him to write in Sinhala, as his English usage cannot be understood.
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Saro / January 3, 2019
Lal Wijenayake has been always, even during the immature university days, a compassionate gentleman caring and helping those in need irrespective of their ethnicity and social status. If ever he gets a chance to be the leader of this country he will turn into a real paradise comparable to Singapore. The people are not matured to elect such gems of his stature as they are ready to be fooled by dishonest robbers or unprincipled opportunists.
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SJ / January 3, 2019
Saro
I respect Lal. But he is least likely to wish to make this country a Singapore.
He is a socialist with democratic values, unlike Lee KY.
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Kamal / January 4, 2019
Thanks Mr Lal Wijenayake for this excellent piece. I couldn’t agree more with your conclusion that the President has no moral right to function as the President, and you have explained all the reasons in such clear and simple terms that even a person of Sirisena’s calibre should be able to understand with no uncertainty whatsoever.
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However, the problem is that Sirisena has no morality at all (though he is not the only Sri Lankan politician with no morality by any means). As I previously mentioned elsewhere in CT, in most other democracies around the world including neighboring India, the leader of a country who is found to have committed such grave violations of the country’s Constitution, would have apologised to the nation and resigned immediately. Unfortunately, not in Sri Lanka.
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Unfotunately it’s a reflection of not just Sirisena but the whole polity, which has degraded to such a low level that there’s no dignity left in it anymore.
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No Sri Lankan politician, as far as the current crop is concerned, would ever voluntarily step down, no matter how grave their crime is. Even more saddening is that, over time, the public is desensitized to such an extent that they are prepared, maybe grudgingly, to accept such felonies, let alone misdemeanors, by their elected representatives. Sirisena and his fellow politicians are well aware of it, hence their arrogance and total disrespect for the law of the land and any Parliamentary conventions.
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Anura / January 4, 2019
No need to resign. 19 A was passed illegally by fooling the supreme court. There are clear differences between the draft of 19A that had been granted approval by the SC and the draft passed in the parliament..You can’t simply take away the power to dissolve the parliament from the president without holding a referendum. Ranil knew that very well. Somehow He managed to do that with his 19 A. Ranil is a fraud and fooled the SC and the people. He is the one who should be impeached
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