News
20A: Govt backs TNA demand
Changes to the proposed 20th Amendment may delay the holding of elections to provincial councils by up to a year, a Cabinet minister said. The changes, the Sunday Times learns, are designed to obtain the support of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA). The alliance has agreed to support the 20th Amendment if the Northern Provincial Council is allowed its full term until September 2018.
Local Government and Provincial Councils Minister Faiszer Musthapha told the Sunday Times that originally it was intended to give the power to parliament to determine the date for polls for all provincial councils on one single day but now that power is vested with Elections Commission (EC). “Accordingly, the EC will call for polls one year after the law comes into operation.”
The minister said new amendments would be moved in Parliament during the committee stage debate later this month, taking into consideration the suggestions made by the Attorney General to the Supreme Court. The courts is currently hearing 13 petitions filed by parliamentarians and civil society organisations challenging the constitutionality of the Amendment.
The decision that would postpone the PC polls for another year comes after a Cabinet memorandum to introduce new mixed electoral reforms. The Cabinet granted approval this week to undertake the task of formulating new mixed electoral reforms that would be applicable to all polls in the country.
According to the existing law, fresh elections have to be called within seven days after a provincial council’s five-year term ends.
The proposed new mixed electoral system for all local government bodies would see 60 percent of the members elected through the First-Past-the-Post (FPP) system and the rest through the Proportional Representation (PR) system.
Mr. Musthapha said that the Government was planning to call for elections to all local government bodies by the end of December or early January. The Elections Commission would decide on the date.However, the minister also noted some technical amendments with regard to the FPP-PR ration have to be made to the recently passed Local Government Amendment Act.
As of now eight PCs except the North Central have rejected the proposed 20th Amendment and demanded more changes as most of them objected to provisions that give Parliament the power now vested in PCs.