News

Abolition of Executive Presidency may cause anarchy – Justice Minister

Published

4 years ago

2022/06/8

Sahan Weerasooriya

Intervention made by lawyer and fiscal officer in Aeroflot affair extraordinary

By Shamindra Ferdinando

Justice, Prison Affairs, Constitutional Reforms Minister Dr. Wijeyadasa Rajapaksa, PC, has warned that the abolition of the Executive Presidency hastily, will plunge the country into anarchy.

The SLPP Colombo District MP said that as the Executive Presidential system has been tied up with the electoral system and 13th Amendment to the Constitution, it couldn’t be done away with.

Dr. Rajapakse said so appearing in a live Swarnavahini interview Monday night (06).

Lawmaker Rajapakse said that the abolition of the executive presidential system without making absolutely necessary constitutional safeguards through other means would definitely threaten Sri Lanka’s unitary status.

Reference was also made to how the Provincial Councils could undermine unitary status if the appointment of Governors, who exercised the executive powers, was done away with. Therefore, the relentless demand of those continuing the ongoing public protest campaign extremist at Galle Face couldn’t be addressed, Minister Rajapaksa said.

In a wide-ranging interview, Dr. Rajapakse discussed several issues at hand, including the alleged conspiracy involving an unnamed Justice Ministry employee and Attorney-at-Law Aruna de Silva, who appeared for the plaintiff Ireland-based Celestial Aviation Trading Co Ltd in a case against Public Joint Stock Company Aeroflot, the circumstances under which UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe was offered premiership and the inclusion of citizenship clause that had been in the 19th Amendment, in the proposed 21st Amendment to the Constitution.

Dr. Rajapaksa said that JRJ enacted the 1978 Constitution and brought in new electoral system believing the UNP could never be defeated. But, for 27 years, the UNP couldn’t regain the presidency.

Since Chandrika Bandaranaike’s Kumaratunga’s triumph at the Nov 1994 presidential election, the UNP’s efforts to regain the Executive Presidency failed, MP Rajapakse said, reminding how the UNP scuttled Kumaratunga’s bid in 2000 to abolish the system. The UNP set fire to the new draft Constitution in Parliament as it didn’t accept the provision the Executive Presidency would be abolished within two years after the enactment of the new law.

Responding to another query, Dr. Rajapakse said that if President Gotabaya Rajapaksa decided to resign, the issue could be settled. If that happened, Parliament could select any member of its choice but it would be from the ruling SLPP, the Justice Minister said. Therefore, a SLPPer would serve the incumbent President’s remaining period, the Minister said, pointing out that in spite of differences among some sections of the government group the SLPP remained the single largest party.

Gotabaya Rajapaksa was elected in Nov 2019 for a five-year period. How could we be sure that Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s successor would be better than him or far worse, Dr. Rajapakse asked? A smiling Minister pointed out in case of a vote in Parliament, the new President could be Basil Rajapaksa, he or somebody else from the SLPP. The SLPP group comprised 145 members whereas the SJB received 54 seats out of whom three had so far switched allegiance to the incumbent dispensation.

Dr. Rajapakse said that enactment of the 21 st Amendment was nothing but a prerequisite for revival of the national economy. The requirement for a new Constitution should be dealt with subsequently, the Minister said, dismissing concerns the government was on the wrong path.

Referring to views expressed by Prof. Alfred Jeyaratnam Wilson, the architect of the 1978 Constitution, in ‘The Gaullist System in Asia’, Dr. Rajapakse justified the Galle Face protest launched nearly two months ago, demanding the resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. Dr. Rajapakse said that the son-in-law of S.J. V. Chelvanayagam foresaw the current crisis 40 years ago.

Asked to explain how he now accepted Wickremesinghe as the Prime Minister after having condemned him on so many occasions, Dr. Rajapakse emphasised the UNP leader was capable of handling the situation. The Justice Minister reiterated his faith in Premier Wickremesinghe. However, the SLPP dissidents’ first choice had been the Samagi Jana Balavegaya (SJB).

Dr. Rajapaksa said that the dissident group comprising 53 lawmakers wanted the SJB to take over the government. “We assured the SJB of our support and readiness to accept some ministerial portfolios. But, the main Opposition repeatedly declined,” Dr. Rajapakse said. The SJB’s position remained the same even after President Gotabaya Rajapaksa invited SJB leader Sajith Premadasa to accept the challenge.

Against the backdrop of the SJB’s decision not to accept their offer there wouldn’t have been any purpose in moving a No-faith motion, Dr. Rajapakse said.

Responding to calls for early parliamentary poll to settle the continuing political-economic-social crisis, lawmaker Rajapakse said that the electorate was not in a mood for election. Had there been a general election now, all current members of Parliament would lose their seats, Dr. Rajapakse said.

At the onset of the interview, the three-member panel of journalists questioned the Justice Minister over the Aeroflot affair, amidst furious Russian reaction to the unprecedented detention of their flight at the BIA on June 02. The minister acknowledged that the lawyer accompanying the fiscal official was an extraordinary development. The Minister said that there was no requirement for the official of Commercial High Court of Western Province to deliver a court order to the concerned official at the BIA. The court official and the lawyer had shown undue interest in the matter and therefore the need for an inquiry couldn’t be ignored.

Dr. Rajapakse said that the Justice Ministry would inquire into the conduct of the court official as the Supreme Court exercised the powers to investigate lawyers. The Justice Minister admitted without hesitation that fiscal officials had been routinely influenced by various interested parties and used them for illegitimate purposes.

The Justice Minister also admitted that suspicions had been raised over the possibility of the fiscal officer and the lawyer being used by a group of conspirators who carried out the project.

All News Advertisement

News

Arshdeep and Prabhsimran star as Punjab Kings hammer Mumbai Indians

Published

9 hours ago

2026/04/17

Priyan

Quinton de Kock opened his IPL 2026 with a cracking century [Cricinfo]

Quinton de Kock’s hundred on his comeback to the Mumbai Indians XI was overshadowed by Prabhsimran Singh and Shreyas Iyer’s demolition of the chase of 196 with 21 balls to spare to keep Punjab Kings unbeaten five games into the season. Arshdeep Singh swung the new ball, reversed the old one, and bowled a quiet over in the middle to lead PBKS’ strangle job on MI, who suffered their fourth successive defeat.

An injury to Rohit Sharma opened the door for de Kock to play his first match of this season and become only the third batter to score a century for three different IPL teams. He scored 112 off 60 balls, Naman Dhir was promoted to No. 4 and scored 50 off 31, but the rest of the MI innings never got going.

Allah Ghazanfar briefly threatened to scupper a typically boisterous PBKS chase with two wickets in the powerplay, but Prabhsimran and Iyer never let MI back in. Like Dhir and de Kock before him, Prabhsimran enjoyed a reprieve on 11, and finished unbeaten 80 off 39 to take his sensational IPL 2026 tally to 211 runs in 122 balls. It was the first time he stayed unbeaten in a successful chase in the IPL.

Iyer scored an equally important 66 off 35, his third consecutive half-century, starting with a four first ball when MI had taken two quick wickets.

Arshdeep came into the match with two wickets and an economy rate of 10.6 in four games this season. Two left-hand openers were the ideal setting for him to improve his performance. The new ball swung in the air and moved off the surface, and Arshdeep kept taking it away from Ryan Rickelton. He beat the bat three times in the first over. In his second, he bowled a wobble-seam ball that ended up on the pads, but Rickelton found deep square leg to perfection.

Arshdeep backed Suryakumar Yadav to walk out expecting movement from left to right, but he angled the seam away, drew a thick edge and doubled his season’s wickets tally in two balls, and also went past 100 IPL wickets.

Even before those two wickets, de Kock signalled dangerous intent with a silken, aerial extra-cover drive first ball off fellow South African Marco Jansen. In Jansen’s next over, Yuzvendra Chahal lost the ball in the lights and missed a sitter from Naman Dhir. In the last over of the powerplay, de Kock gave up on making his ground but Iyer missed the stumps from mid-off.

That drop wasn’t the last error Chahal made. He started his spell by searching and frequently over-pitching and ended up conceding five sixes in his three overs for 45. Dhir hit two of those, the one over extra cover the highlight of his innings.

By the time de Kock got to fifty, MI looked set for a total in excess of 200. From 97 for 2 in 10 overs, de Kock went up a gear even as Dhir caught up with him. At 125 for 2 in 12 overs, PBKS were looking at a challenging target.

The comeback for PBKS began with Jansen conceding just seven in the 13th over, but like in the game against Sunrisers Hyderabad, the lack of pace from Shashank Singh once again produced a game-changing wicket. In his 31-ball 50, Dhir evoked a lot of Hardik Pandya with a compact bat swing and shots that looked quite like the MI captain’s. Pandya himself, though, hardly got anything out of the middle of the bat. He eventually fell for 14 off 12 to what could well end up as the catch of the tournament.

Iyer didn’t even get his name on the scoreboard for this effort at long on: he went full length as he leaped to rein the ball in, caught it in his left hand while airborne, transferred it to his right even as he came down over the boundary, and managed to throw it to Xavier Bartlett before he touched ground.

With the ball reversing, Jansen and Arshdeep bowled excellent yorkers, going for eight and nine in overs 18 and 19. Sherfane Rutherford got four tailing pinpoint yorkers during his five-ball stay for one run. Only 70 came in the last eight, prompting Dhir to say during the innings break that MI were 20 runs short.

The way Priyansh Arya and Prabhsimran tucked into some buffet bowling from Deepak Chahar, it looked like 195 was not 20 short but 40. However, led by Jasprit Bumrah who bowled four straight dots to Arya, Ghazanfar ended up with two wickets in the powerplay: Arya caught at midwicket and Cooper Connolly caught behind.

There was a time when MI had strung together 10 balls for one run and a wicket across the second and third overs of the chase. Prabhsimran cut the 11th for a regulation catch to backward point but Bumrah, wicketless in six straight IPL matches now, dropped it.

When Connolly fell, MI were still hopeful of a comeback. Iyer, though, brought a sense of calm, playing Ghazanfar’s mystery spin like you would offspin. He cover-drove the first ball he faced for four, and PBKS never looked back.

Prabhsimran faced just six balls in the first five overs, which means he did most of the damage with the field spread out. It started when Chahar came back to bowl the eighth over. Prabhsimran charged at him to hit a 90-metre six over wide long-off before tucking one off the hip for four.

Now Prabhsimran began to dominate the strike and the scoring, bringing up his fifty with successive fours off Shardul Thakur in just 23 balls.

Bumrah might be wicketless but his bowling has been good through the season. However, when Iyer pulled him for a disdainful six in the 13th over, it was all over for MI. If there were any doubts remaining with 50 needed off the last seven overs, Prabhsimran dispelled them with a four and a six off Pandya. The end was swift and brutal with even Bumrah finishing with 0 for 41 in his four overs.

Brief scores:
Punjab Kings 198 for 3 in 16.3 overs (Priyansh Arya 15, Prabhsimran 80*, Cooper Connolly 17, Shreyas Iyer 66, Marcus Stoinis 10*; AM Ghazanfar 2-31, Shardul Thakur 1-42 ) beat Mumbai Indians 195 for 6 in 20 overs (Quinton De Kock 112*, Naman Dhir 50, Hardik Pandya 14; Arshdeep Singh 3-22, Marco Jansen 1-30, Shahshank Singh 1-19) by seven wickets

[Cricinfo]

Latest News

Heat Index at Caution Level in the Northern, North-central, North-western, Western, Sabaragamuwa, Eastern and Southern provinces and in Monaragala district

Published

11 hours ago

2026/04/17

Priyan

Warm Weather Advisory
Issued by the Natural Hazards Early Warning Centre
Issued at 3.30 p.m. on 16 April 2026, valid for 17 April 2026.

The Heat index, the temperature felt on human body is likely to increase up to ‘Caution level’ at some places in the Northern, North-central, North-western, Western, Sabaragamuwa, Eastern
and Southern provinces and in Monaragala district.

The Heat Index Forecast is calculated by using relative humidity and maximum temperature and this is the condition that is felt on your body. This is not the forecast of maximum temperature. It is generated by the Department of Meteorology for the next day period and prepared by using global numerical weather prediction model data.

Effect of the heat index on human body is mentioned in the above table and it is prepared on the advice of the Ministry of Health and Indigenous Medical Services.

ACTION REQUIRED
Job sites: Stay hydrated and takes breaks in the shade as often as possible.
Indoors: Check up on the elderly and the sick.
Vehicles: Never leave children unattended.
Outdoors: Limit strenuous outdoor activities, find shade and stay hydrated.
Dress: Wear lightweight and white or light-colored clothing.

Note:
In addition, please refer to advisories issued by the Disaster Preparedness & Response Division, Ministry of Health in this regard as well. For further clarifications please contact 011-7446491.

News

Ex-COPE head questions Prez Secy’s intervention in coal scam probe

Published

11 hours ago

2026/04/17

Thilina Walpola

“Auditor General’s reports a matter for Legislature not the Executive”

Former Chairman of the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) Charitha Herath has said it is the COPE, and not the Secretary to the President, that should have asked the CID to probe irregularities in the procurement of coal for the Lakvijaya power plant.

Dr. Nandika Sanath Kumanayake, who is the Secretary to the President, lodged a complaint with the CID last week seeking an investigation into coal procurement.

No previous Secretary to a President had done so, the former parliamentarian and the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) Working Committee member said. Herath said so responding to The Island query regarding Kumanayake calling for a probe into coal procurement, since 2009, following the National Audit Office (NAO) report on the controversial procurement process for the 2025/2-26 period.

Herath emphasised that COPE, taking into consideration the growing discontent over coal procurement, especially after the NAO exposed serious irregularities, should have initiated action. Herath cited the National System Operator’s (NSO) seeking an additional electricity tariff increase of 15%, in addition to 10% increase announced on 01 April, for the second quarter, to cover-up Rs 16 bn deficit in power generation, as a matter of grave concern. NSO has cited the prevailing dry weather, the continuing crisis in West Asia, and the low-grade coal that had been procured as primary reasons for the unanticipated shortfall in electricity generation.

Herath said that as the Secretary to the Ministry concerned was the Chief Accounting Officer, the actions of the Secretary to the President caused a technical issue. Prof. Udayanga Hemapala, now under a cloud over the violation of procurement procedures, as confirmed by the NAO, is the Secretary to the Energy Ministry. Herath emphasised the importance of the procedure adopted in appointing a Secretary to a Ministry. “President issues one letter making the appointment. Secretary to the Finance Ministry issues a second letter underscoring the responsibilities of a Ministry Secretary as the Chief Accounting Officer of a particular Ministry,” Herath said.

The second letter emphasised the accountability on the part of the Ministry Secretary regarding public finance and his direct answerability to Parliament.

The ex-COPE Chief pointed out that the Secretary to the President was part of the executive. He was not part of the legislature. If there had been a directive from COPE, that should have been issued to the Secretary to the Energy Ministry, Herath said, emphasising the entire process had to be led by the legislature not the executive. In this instance to make matters worse the finger is also pointed at the executive for being part of the alleged cover up.

The Auditor General, who heads the NAO, is answerable to Parliament, Herath said, pointing out that the AG never sent reports to the Secretary to the President, who, too, comes under the purview of the NAO. The intervention made by the Secretary to the President could set a very bad precedent and it was unfortunate that the NPP, having campaigned on an anti-corruption platform at national elections in 2024 was now struggling to cope up with the major post-Aragalaya coal scandal.

The NAO undertook the examination of the 2025/2-26 coal procurement on a request made by Dr. Nishantha Samaraweera, Galle District lawmaker, representing the ruling NPP.

Lakvijaya, the country’s sole coal power plant, situated at Norochcholai, requires approximately 2.25 mt million annually and is credited with generating 30% to 40% of the overall national electricity requirement.

According to the NAO report, the Energy Ministry had awarded the term tender for the supply of coal to India’s Trident Chemphar Ltd., though it wasn’t properly registered. The NAO also pointed out the failure on the part of the supplier to follow proper procedure in respect of loading and unloading at respective ports.

Herath said that intentionally, or inadvertently, the NPP had erred in handling the investigation. He said after receiving the NAO’s report, COPE could have averted unnecessary controversy by following the laid down procedures. The COPE Chairman could direct the Energy Secretary to inquire into the coal procurement within seven days and submit a report to Parliament. In addition, if there had been any wrongdoing on the part of officials, relevant documents/files should be sent to the CIABOC or the CID.

The COPE, in consultation with the Speaker, could also take up in Parliament as an urgent/emergency issue at the onset of the proceedings, Herath said, adding that an interim report could be presented. On the basis of that report, in terms of the Standing Orders the Parliament could immediately decide to send it to the CID.

In addition to the above mentioned procedures, the COPE could on its own initiate a fresh inquiry and submit a report to Parliament and the country, Herath said. Pointing out that the coal company comes under the purview of the executive and not the legislature, Herath said that actions of the executive could be investigated. Herath explained how the British and the US responded to such situations. Unfortunately, here in Sri Lanka apparently the COPE was being used to clear the Minister concerned while holding the officials responsible for the coal scandal.

In the wake of the NAO report signed by Auditor General Samudrika Jayarathne, the defeat of the no-confidence motion moved against Energy Minister Kumara Jayakody couldn’t be considered a victory for the government, the ex-MP said. In fact, the coal scam has challenged the NPP’s much propagated anti-corruption stance, Herath said, adding that the issue couldn’t be examined without discussing the Energy Minister being indicted over corruption by the Colombo High Court recently.

By Shamindra Ferdinando