News
Auditor General post still vacant; No quorum for President’s nominee
View(s):By Ranjith Padmasiri
The appointment of a new Auditor General has been further delayed after the candidate President Anura Kumara Dissanayake put forward to fill the vacancy in an acting capacity failed to muster the minimum number of votes required for Constitutional Council (CC) approval.
President Dissanayake had recommended that the CC approve the name of Senior Deputy Auditor General L.S.I. Jayaratne to serve as Acting Auditor General for three months.
According to the Constitution, a minimum of five votes are required at the 10-member CC for an appointment to either be approved or rejected. In the absence of a minimum number of votes, the recommendation is considered as having failed to pass.
The CC had previously rejected two other names put forward by the President to fill the vacancy.
When the CC met under the chairmanship of Speaker Jagath Wickramaratne on Friday to consider the President’s recommendation to appoint Ms Jayaratne as Acting Auditor General, one of the three civil society members on the Council had objected to her name, presenting details regarding investigations into various allegations made against her.
The Sunday Times understands that details regarding a disciplinary inquiry held against the President’s nominee and an investigation being conducted against her by the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption were tabled at the meeting.
When it came to a vote, four members in the CC had voted for the nominee, while two had voted against her. Two others had abstained from voting.
Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa was not present at Friday’s CC meeting.
The best way to say that you found the home of your dreams is by finding it on Hitad.lk. We have listings for apartments for sale or rent in Sri Lanka, no matter what locale you're looking for! Whether you live in Colombo, Galle, Kandy, Matara, Jaffna and more - we've got them all!