Opposition and Samagi Jana Balawegeya (SJB) Leader Sajith Premadasa yesterday (5) called for the abolition of the Executive Presidency, urging the process of abolition to be commenced within this week.
“This deal-making brand of politics has been rejected by the country. The country is asking for a new start. The people are telling this Government to go home. That is the truth. There is nothing outside of that that we can do here. These 150 members of the Government approved the 20th Amendment to the Constitution. Now, the time has come to change the Executive Presidency. Let us make this an opportunity to do so. Start the process to abolish the Executive Presidency this week itself,” said Premadasa while speaking in Parliament.
Addressing Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, Premadasa reminded Rajapaksa that even his own people were against Rajapaksa retaining even a little bit of power as the Premier through the 20th Amendment to the Constitution.
“Remember during the debate on the 20th Amendment to the Constitution Bill where we said that we do not need a Constitution to make the Prime Minister a scarecrow and the President all-powerful or vice versa. We spoke about checks and balances. It is clear that we need to change the Executive Presidency, but we also do not need an all-powerful Prime Minister. There need to be checks and balances.”
Premadasa called on the House to begin the mechanism to abolish the Executive Presidency within this week.
“Let us have a backbone, and within this week, bring the mechanism to abolish the Executive Presidency. Let us stop playing opportunistic politics and agree to one policy.”
The 19th Amendment to the Constitution, passed in 2015, diluted the powers of the Executive Presidency, while the 20th Amendment to the Constitution, passed in 2019, enhanced them and simultaneously weakened the powers of the Prime Minister.
Furthermore, Premadasa spoke about the wave of islandwide public protests that have intensified over the past week, mostly centred around the “Go Home Gota” slogan.
“The Parliament must reflect the voice and heartbeat of the people on the roads. There need not be another voice here since we represent the public. Today, the public has stepped onto the roads with no fear despite the curfew, the state of emergency, and the brief social media ban. The entire country is telling in one voice that we cannot continue on this path; that this group of people cannot do this. If we cannot represent their struggle here, is it any surprise then that they are saying that all 225 of us are not needed?” he questioned.
He stressed that nobody from the SJB will be an “opportunist at this moment to become temporary ministers and play musical chairs”.
“If we are coming to power, we will come with the blessings of the people, and not in any other way,” he added.
On Sunday (3), the 11 constituent parties of the governing alliance, led by Government Parliamentarians Udaya Gammanpila, Wimal Weerawansa, and Vasudeva Nanayakkara, proposed that an all-party Interim Government be formed as a solution to the current political crisis gripping the country. Following the resignations of the Cabinet of Ministers on Sunday, four Cabinet portfolios (Finance, Foreign, Education, and Highways) were appointed to maintain stability in the country until a full Cabinet is appointed. However, newly appointed Finance Minister, President’s Counsel (PC) M.U.M. Ali Sabry resigned overnight. The Government lost its two-thirds majority in the Parliament yesterday as 40 members of Parliament (MPs) announced that they will function independently. Although President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has called on the Opposition to show a 113 majority to hand over power, the SJB, the National People’s Power (NPP), and the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) have stressed that they will not accept any solution that does not include the resignation of the President.