Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) MP Sunil Handunnetti has revealed that his party is not in agreement with the 13th Amendment to the Constitution.
Speaking on the 13th Amendment during an interview with Ada Derana, Handunnetti revealed that the National People’s Power (NPP) does not accept the Amendment to any extent, adding that the JVP too is vehemently against the legislature.
“The difference between the current state of Provincial Councils and that following the implementation of the 13th Amendment is the devolving of police and land powers. Where are these police and land powers now? They are within the constitution, but cannot be implemented as the people do not want this”, the JVP MP stated.
Both the Sinhalese and Tamil communities have historically opposed the 13th Amendment, with the former claiming that the legislature devolved too great an extent of powers, while the latter countered that not enough powers were devolved.
Meanwhile, speaking on the upcoming Local Government election, the MP stated that they are contesting the election not just as the JVP, but as a coalition of parties.
“The National People’s Power (NPP) is not proposing ideals in line with their 1979 policies, but they have new manifestos for 2023. However, not everyone is in agreement with these ideas”, Handunnetti said.