Category: Breaking News

The Cabinet of the newly-elected Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP)-led National People’s Power (NPP) Government is set to be sworn in tomorrow (18), it is learnt.

NPP sources confirmed that the Cabinet would be notably smaller than previous administrations, with the number of ministers capped at fewer than 25, in line with the Government’s pledge to streamline governance and improve efficiency.

The swearing in of the new Members of Parliament (MPs) will be held on Thursday (21), with President Anura Kumara Dissanayake scheduled to address Parliament that evening.

As of yesterday (16), the NPP has been finalising the composition of its Cabinet.

According to sources, a special meeting had been held last morning to discuss the Cabinet’s structure and by last night the final Cabinet positions were expected to be confirmed.

The NPP’s victory at the General Elections marked a historic moment for Sri Lanka’s political landscape.

Led by President Dissanayake, the NPP secured a two-thirds majority in Parliament, garnering 6,863,186 votes (61.56%) and 159 seats. This is the first time a political party has won a two-thirds majority under the Proportional Representation (PR) system, breaking multiple records in the process.

The NPP emerged victorious in 21 out of 22 electoral districts, including major regions such as Colombo, Kandy, Gampaha, and Jaffna. The Illankai Tamil Arasu Katchi (ITAK) won the Batticaloa District. This victory represents the largest number of seats ever obtained by a single party in Sri Lanka’s history since the parliamentary seat count was increased to 225.

The NPP’s win also saw it secure the highest percentage of valid votes obtained by a party at a Parliamentary Election, surpassing the previous record held by the United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) in 2010.

In addition to securing 159 seats, the NPP also won the highest number of electorates (151) and electoral districts (21), breaking records previously held by the UPFA in 2010. Its victory also saw it surpass the SLPP’s 2020 vote total, cementing its place as the dominant force in Sri Lanka’s political arena.

Meanwhile, the election results marked a significant setback for Opposition parties.

Sajith Premadasa’s Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) secured only 40 seats (including five National List slots) – a sharp decline from the 4.3 million votes it received at the September Presidential Election.

The SLPP, which had won a decisive 59% of the vote in 2020, was reduced to just three seats and 350,429 votes.

Ranil Wickremesinghe’s New Democratic Front (NDF) won only three seats and two National List slots – a substantial drop from his 2.2 million presidential votes. The ITAK secured eight seats with 257,813 votes.

Many prominent MPs in the former Parliament failed to retain their seats, including Manusha Nanayakkara, Harin Fernando, Kanchana Wijesekera, Johnston Fernando, Ramesh Pathirana, Mahinda Amaraweera, Duminda Dissanayake, Mahindananda Aluthgamage, Dilum Amunugama, and Rajitha Senaratne, among others.

AKD’s new Govt. policy statement on Thursday

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake (AKD) will present the new Government’s policy statement during the ceremonial sitting of the 10th Parliament on 21 November at 3 p.m.

The policy statement, a constitutional requirement under Article 33(a), will outline the Government’s plans and legislative priorities for the coming term.

The session will officially begin at 10 a.m., with the policy statement being delivered later in the afternoon.

Following this, a three-day workshop for newly elected MPs on the parliamentary system will be held from 25-27 November.

Registration for new MPs will take place between 18 and 20 November, with Parliament employees’ leave cancelled during this period.

The Jaffna electoral district, once considered a stronghold of Tamil nationalism and dominated by Tamil political parties for decades, is no longer the case with the National Peoples’Power (NPP) led by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, winning the electorate securing three seats this week.

This is the first time since independence that a southern political party swept the northern electorate which consists of administrative districts of Jaffna and Kilinochchi, with perhaps an exception being the 1970 municipal elections. The Sri Lanka Freedom Party won the election and its Jaffna District organiser, Alfred Duraiappa, was elected mayor of Jaffna.

“This is a big blow to the Tamil nationalist movement as a whole, said C.V. K.Sivagnanam, senior leader of the grand old Ilankai Tamil Arasu Katchchi (ITAK) which had dominated the district since its inception in 1949. The party secured only one seat along with its rival All Ceylon Tamil Congress (ACTC).

“Our politicians need to do some serious introspection now on this new wave which seemed to have swept the whole country. The internal party rivalries and disputes did significant damage to the party and alienated voters, particularly young voters,” he told the Sunday Times.

With a technician turned trade union activist Karunanathan Ilankumaran as the leading candidate, the NPP returned three seats with the other two being won by Rajeevan Jeyachandramoorthi, a school principal and Sribavanantharajah Sanmuganatha, a retired medical administrator. During the parliamentary polls of 2020, the NPP received merely 853 votes in the district while this time, it secured 80,830 votes.

The ITAK’s setback was gradual as it won 10 seats at the 2020 polls and now reduced further to eight seats including one bonus seat allocated under the National List.

Surprisingly, the party won the Batticaloa electorate — the only district the NPP lost — with three seats. In Trincomalee, Vanni, and Digamadulla districts, the party secured a seat each.

The one-time grand old Tamil party also saw its strong electoral alliance of Tamil National Alliance (TNA) collapse with constituent parties making their own breakaway groups.

The traditional Tamil vote bank enjoyed by ITAK for decades was also scattered between various breakaway splinter groups and independent groups.

In Jaffna and Vanni electoral districts where six legislators each returned to the House, more than 400 candidates contested from political parties and independent groups. After election results were released, former Jaffna district Parliamentarian M.A. Sumanthiran who failed to get re-elected, met reporters on Monday and acknowledged the party’s setback.

“ITAK contested alone in all districts across North and East and won seven seats in total. This is not a defeat for the party. I was not elected this time and I accept the people’s verdict. I will continue to work for the party and people with responsibility. If my assistance is required, I will definitely help them,” Mr Sumanthiran said while stressing that the NPP declared earlier in its manifesto that it plans to introduce a new Constitution.

Eelam Peoples’ Democratic Party (EPDP) leader Douglas Devananda was voted out ending his three decade-long political career since 1994.

Angajan Ramanathan who made history at the previous parliamentary polls with the highest number of preferential votes in the Jaffna electorate failed to get reelected under the Democratic National Alliance ticket this time.

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The National People’s Power (NPP) party led by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake has secured a landslide victory in Sri Lanka’s parliamentary elections, winning a two-thirds majority. This result has significant implications for Sri Lanka’s political landscape and future governance:

Constitutional Reforms: With a two-thirds majority, the NPP now has the power to amend the constitution13. This is particularly important as President Dissanayake has pledged to dismantle the executive presidency, a system that has been criticized for centralizing power.

Executive Presidency Abolition: The NPP can now move forward with its plan to abolish the executive presidency, which has been a contentious issue in Sri Lankan politics for decades.

Anti-Corruption Measures: The NPP campaigned on a strong anti-corruption platform. With a supermajority, they can now implement sweeping reforms to combat corruption and increase transparency in governance.

Economic Reforms: The NPP has promised to reverse austerity measures linked to the IMF bailout negotiated by the previous administration. They now have the parliamentary support to enact their economic agenda.

Judicial Independence: The two-thirds majority allows the NPP to introduce constitutional reforms that further guarantee the independence of the judiciary3
Provincial Councils Review: The NPP can now initiate a review of the Provincial Councils system, potentially streamlining governance while preserving regional autonomy.

Mandate for Change: This overwhelming victory represents a strong mandate from the Sri Lankan people for the NPP’s reformist agenda, reflecting a desire for substantial change in the country’s political system.

Reduced Opposition: The main opposition parties, including the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) and the National Democratic Front (NDF), have been significantly weakened, with their parliamentary presence greatly reduced.

Generational Shift: This election result signifies a major intergenerational transfer of political leadership in Sri Lanka, with many established politicians from the old order withdrawing from the contest.

International Relations: The NPP’s strong mandate may lead to shifts in Sri Lanka’s foreign policy and international relationships, particularly in how it approaches economic partnerships and diplomatic ties.

However, it’s important to note that while a two-thirds majority gives the NPP significant power, it also comes with great responsibility. The party will need to use this mandate judiciously to implement reforms that benefit the country while maintaining democratic checks and balances.

The leader of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP), former President Mahinda Rajapaksa claims that the party received the exact number of votes they had expected.

Speaking to the media today (16), he expressed that the victory of the National People’s Power (NPP) is a positive development, noting that freshers should be given the opportunity to see if they can succeed.

Commenting on the significant rise of the NPP from 3% of total votes in the previous general election to 61%, the former President said: “It is the people of this country who voted, not outsiders. I think we should respect the public mandate… Maybe [they will] succeed, maybe [they will] collapse.”

In response to a question raised by a journalist, Rajapaksa also added that the SLPP will never give up and that he will not retire from politics, asking, “Which politician retires from politics?”

Furthermore, he confirmed that no discussions are currently ongoing with former President Ranil Wickremesinghe regarding the future politics of the party.

When asked about his thoughts on what happened to Wickremesinghe in the recent elections, Rajapaksa said: “I’m feeling so sorry for him, that’s all.”

Sri Lanka’s National People’s Power will not mis-use a two third majority given by voters to carry out its program, Tilvin Silva, General Secretary of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna, the main party behind the political group said.

“We have understood the weight of responsibility of this victory,” Silva told reporters in Colombo after the landslide win.

“That trust we have to protect. We have got 159 votes, exceeding two thirds. There was opinion in society that there should not be two thirds. Actually, we did not seek it.

“But people have given it. So we have a responsibility to handle this excessive power very carefully.

“Because our leaders have mis-used it in the past to put down the people. They were drunk with power. We will not become bloated with the power. We will be very careful and be responsible.”

There were many challenges ahead of the government, he said.

“We will use the mandate given by the people, not to protect power,” Silva said. “We will use it to rebuild the country, built democracy and end corruption. We know the weight of responsibility.

“We have taken a fallen country. Due to debt we had to have an agreement with the IMF.

“We have to end rural poverty. We have to have a clean, Sri lanka. We have to revive a fallen economy and help people to live with dignity. We will use this mandate for that.”

The people in the North, East and the hill country have joined hands with NPP thinking like one nation, he said.

It by defeating, traditional, strong political parties who have reigned for 70 years this victory was bestowed on us. The old, elitist, the hegemonic era (prabhoo, adipathyawadi) has been ended. The power of our country has ended it.

The era where rulers took on an aura of elitism and used public funds and priviledges had ended, he said.

“Now the politics of the general public has come. I think this is a great victory,” Silva said. “On the other side, it has defeated nationalism. There were attempts to ethnic and religious division. The, politics where leaders depended on ethnic and religious extremism has ended.

“For many years, elections were won on nationalism. The Rajapaksa won on Sinhala Bhuddhist nationalism. Other used Tamil and Muslim nationalism. All those parties have been rejected.

The Indian High Commissioner in Sri Lanka, Santosh Jha, met the Sri Lankan President Anrua Kumara Dissanayake on friday, to congratulate him on winning the parliamentary elections with a two-thirds majority.

Sri Lanka’s voter turnout in the Thursday parliament election was around 30 percent on average by 12 noon with Ratnapura and Kegalle districts were outperforming, an election monitor said.

“On average, the voter turnout is around 30 percent, according to our monitors at district level. It has exceeded 35 percent in both Ratnapura and Kegalle distrcts,” Manjula Gajanayake, Executive Director at Institute for Democratic Reforms and Electoral Studies (IRES).

“There is huge interest in voting in Vanni electoral district while it has been usual in Jaffna. The turnout is low in the Eastern province, but usually most people vote in the afternoon there,” he said.

Election commission officials have asked the people to vote as early as possible due to risks of possible rains and thunder showers throughout the country.

The district-level voter turnout for the 2024 General Election has already exceeded 40 percent in several districts, according to reports.

Accordingly, the voter turnout percentages of several districts as at 12 noon today (Nov.14) are as follows:

Gampaha 40%
Nuwara-Eliya 40%
Kandy 30%
Matara 34%
Kegalle 32%
Batticaloa 32%
Puttalam 30%
Badulla 41%
Ratnapura 35%
Ampara 37%
Trincomalee 45%
Kurunegala 28%
Anuradhapura 40%