ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s newly proposed 22nd amendment to the constitution, while being based on the 19th amendment, will transcend the latter’s democratic features while also retaining the more progressive aspects of the 20th amendment, Justice Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe said.

In a press briefing held on Wednesday August 10, Rajapakshe summarised some key features of the proposed amendment.

“The basic features of the 19th amendment are all there. Mainly, reestablishing the Constitutional Assembly which has the power to approve appointments of High Court judges and higher government officials, and appoint members to Commissions,” he said.

Unlike in the 19th amendment, he said, the three members of the Constitutional Assembly from parliament would not be selected by the Prime Minister and Opposition Leader.

Instead, one member will be appointed by and of the ruling party, one by and of the main opposition, and one member from the majority appointment from and of the other parties.The three civilian members of the Constitutional Council will be appointed by the Speaker with the approval of parliament without intervention by the Prime Minister or Opposition Leader.

“As in the 19th amendment, the Police Commission, Public Service Commission, Election Commission and Bribery Commission will be independent institutions,” he said.

The Public Procurement Commission and Audit Services Commission, which were dissolved by the 20th Amendment, will be re-established by the 22nd Amendment.

“These Commissions were established because most corruption in the governing process happens during audits and procurement processes,” said Rajapakshe.

The Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) is to be appointed by the President with the approval of the Constitutional Council.

“There was justified discourse surrounding the appointment of the Central Bank Governor,” said Rajapakshe.

“[Previous Governors] Arjuna Mahendran and Ajith Nivaard Cabraal worked in an arbitrary manner to destroy the country’s economy, and because the impact on the economy is so great, steps had to be taken [regarding the appointment of CBSL governors],” he claimed.

The 22nd Amendment aims to restrict the president’s ministerial portfolios to just the Defence Ministry via interim arrangements, while the 19th Amendment granted them authority over the Environment and Mahaweli ministries too.Rajapakshe said the Defence Ministry must remain with the President, as the country’s security comes under their responsibility according to previous Supreme Court rulings.

“Under the 22nd Amendment, until a Minster is appointed, the President must take responsibility of the respective Ministry. Additionally, in case of emergency, the President can take over a Ministry on the advice of the PM,” he said.Bills proposed in Parliament can be contested in the Supreme Court, and this can be done within 14 days of the Bill’s presentation.

“The public has the right to contest if a Bill proposed in Parliament is Constitutional or not. To enact those rights, the public must do so within seven days of presentation of the bill. We have increased that to 14 days, to give the people more opportunity to take part in the legislative process,” said Rajapakshe.Under the 22nd Amendment, Sri Lanka will establish laws to carry out the provisions of the United Nations Convention against Corruption and other international conventions regarding bribery and corruption.

“Though there was [a similar provision] in the 19th amendment, no laws were created. The Anti Corruption bill has already been created, it will be further studied in the coming weeks,” said Rajapakshe.

The Bribery and Corruption Commission Law and Declaration of Assets and Liabilities Law will also be updated, he said.