Joint Opposition –What game are you playing ?
Posted on July 22nd, 2017
By Charles.S.Perera
The people have placed their trust in the Joint Opposition lead by Dinesh Goonewardhane . There is a cry coming out of the heart of the people that the yahapalanaya hybrid government should not be allowed to write a new constitution for Sri Lanka. Does the Joint Opposition hear that cry or are they not giving both their ears to that cry allowing their other ears to listen to other calls ?
The leader of the Federation of National Organisations Dr. Gunadasa Amarasekara, has accused Dinesh Goonewardene for writing secret letters to the Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe with regard to problems that had arisen in the Constitution making process. If it is true Dinesh Gunawardane has to make it clear why he is remaining in the Constitutional Assembly, along with a part of JO when there are problems known to him in the Constitution making process.
We know that even his father late Philip Gunewardena the father of Socialism in Sri Lanka” during the end of his carrier preferred to remain in political power accepting in 1965 the Ministry of Industries and Fisheries in the National Government of Dudley Senanayake. We certainly do not believe that Dinesh Gunawardene will follow suit, but people begin to question the reason why the rest of the JO under Dinesh Gunawardena continues to remain in the CA while Wimal Weerawansa true to his principles withdrew his party’s participation in the CA.
It was a mistake of the JO from the very beginning to have participated in the Committees stage of the process leading to the writing of a New Constitution. That is in addition to the mistake the JO made in the 1st instance in voting for the 19th Amendment. The 19 Amendment had specified a period within which the Parliament cannot be dissolved. It is contrary to democratic procedure as one has to put up with a government for its full term even if it is not productive, offensive to democracy and abuses the power of the government to destroy the country’s historical and cultural values as now it is being done by the so called Yayapalanaya hybrid government in place.
It was perfectly in order that a New Constitution was promulgated in 1972 to declare Sri Lanka a Republic. Prior to that Sri Lanka had dominion status and had constitutions written by the Colonial Government. After that there was no reason to write new constitutions as the first Republican Constitution could have been Amended to adopt it to new political situations.
However , when J.R.Jayawardhane formed a government of UNP in 1977, he prepared a new constitution which was promulgated in 1978. However, the 1978 Constitution with executive powers given to the President served its purpose in the process of the elimination of terrorism in Sri Lanka. That constitution is therefore worth keeping as the permanent Constitution of Sri Lanka allowing adjustment to meet any new unforeseen situation by passing Amendments.
Now a hybrid government with problems between the members of its constituent parties has decided to write a new Constitution. There is no necessity to write a New Constitution to a country each time a new government is formed by a different political party or a combined hybrid Government of several parties as in the case of the Present Government of the President Sirisena.
Each time a new Political party takes the reins of government the country remains the same it does not become any different from what it had been before, therefore the new political party that is to form a new government should go on with the same old Constitution changing it if necessary by passing Amendments.
In Sri Lanka today after the formation of a hybrid government of several political parties, the political and social situations have drastically changed as the country is no more the country it was with a united people despite a majority community, and other minority communities.
The new government calling itself a yahapalanaya trying to introduce power sharing” in a so called reconciliation process, when in fact there is no such power sharing necessary as all the communities- the majority and the minorities, enjoy the same rights and priviledges, has placed Sri Lanka in a situation worse than it had been under terrorism. The Majority Community in Sri Lanka- Sinhala enjoys no other rights and priviledges than those enjoyed by the minority Communities..
This myth of power sharing has been created only by the political leaders of the Minority Communities. The Hybrid government of President Sirisena, unable to explain this truth to the minorities with whom they have come into agreements of sharing political power in return for their votes, have given in to the demands” of the Minority Communities to please the foreign countries, which stand with the Minorities to make the Majority weak and give into the absurdities” of the Minorities.
The writing of a new Constitution is another such absurdity demanded by the Minorities , insisted by foreign countries and the United Nations Organisation with an eye to make the Constitution Federal, so that it would help the Minorities later to set up their own Communal Regions.
Under such a situation of a government weakened by foreign pressure on one hand , and the fear on the other hand of loosing the minority votes at elections , allowing this Ranil Sirisena hybrid Government to write a New Constitution would be a political suicide”. It will cause irreparable damage to Sri Lanka which would by such a move loose its unitary status, its Communal unity, and menace its historical, cultural and religious values.
Therefore the Joint Opposition should take into consideration the inherent dangers of writing a new Constitution by Sirisena-Ranil hybrid government at this decisive time of Sri Lanka’s history. The JO, should therefore withdraw forthwith from all their responsibilities in this conspiracy to write a New Government under pressure by foreign Governments and the UN, and the threat of the minority Communities denying their votes at future elections to Sirisena –Ranil Combination.
The Joint Opposition to win back the people’s confidence and their support should act as one, and immediately withdraw from the Constitutional Assembly. If not it should state its reason for not leaving the Constitutional Assembly.
The interfering into Sri Lanka’s internal affairs by the UN by sending its representatives Jeffrey Feltman and Ben Emerson are questionable and goes beyond the UN’s role as specified in the UN Charter.
It is appreciated that the JO leader Dinesh Gunawardena raised objection to UN interference in Sri Lanka Constitution making process. Such protests are irrelevant as long as the Joint Opposition has not officially withdrawn from the Constitutional Assembly and ceased all activities with regard to the Constitution making process.
If the Government calls for a referendum of the people the JO should be prepared to warn the people of the dangers in allowing the yahapalanaya government to write a new Constitution, and request the people to vote against the writing a New Constitution at any referendum.
If the argument of the JO for remaining in the Constitutional Assembly is to vote against the Constitution, now in draft form when presented for the approval by the CA, it would be no deterrent for the Yahapalanaya Government to claim that the New Constitution had been passed, even without the vote of the JO, as the presence of the members of the JO in the Constitutional Assembly would give the Constitutional Assembly the legal right of an Assembly of Parliamentarians to pass the presented draft Constitution as a valid document. This may open the Constitution to be contested as invalid later in a court of law, but by then lot of damage would have been done to the country.
The Jaffna District MP Devananda’s statement that the writing of a new constitution is not necessary if the whole of the 13Amendment is implemented cannot be accepted, as the 13Amendment is the source of all the problems we have with the Tamils. The 13 Amendment should be withdrawn from the 1978 Constitution, and a new system of provincial governments should be set up to reflect the power of the people coming from the village level to the top.
July 22nd, 2017 at 3:53 pm
Thank you Charles. We cannot give them blank cheques. Now they say they too are leaving. This shows WW is the leader now.
July 22nd, 2017 at 4:34 pm
Thank you Charles.
We have long given unconditional support to our favourite political parties and they have been spoiled. They dug their own grave as a result. If an election is held now the JO votes are divided. NFF loses its identity and policy if it joins JO again for an election. They should not. Instead the JO must come to the fold.
The problem with the JO is it is hoping to join Sirisena one day. For that they don’t deviate too much away from Sirisena. The PM is appointed by the President. JO has to decide between the people and the president.
July 22nd, 2017 at 10:25 pm
I know most of the Mahinda supporters are angry with him and JO for not taking concrete decisions on matters concerning the public and the country in whole. We should keep faith on him and his policies. As he always say that they (JO) won’t publicised their plans and programs until the correct time comes therefore we should wait and see without complaining yet. He is a man of vision and a strong person as well as a popular one. Even Maha Sanga said not to leave the Constitution committee yet. They should stay there and watch what these yamaballo are trying to do under the table. Yamapalakayo work to satisfy Para Suddo and the Indian parasites. They damn care about the Sinhala buddhist public in this country. JO is with the ordinary people as always. Sirisena and Ranil or the UNP should not be trusted at all. They are enemies of this land. They are enemies of Sinhala buddhist population. Check their past and present and decided on the future elections. They are liars, cowards and traitors to my motherland. Follow Maha Sanga in this country and think hard what is best for our citizens without go behind unscrupulous dirty politicians.
We never heard gunshots in Jaffna during Mahinda’s time but see now. This is the beginning for another dark future in this country. We have never seen murders, accidents and drugs like now at any other times. All these happenings happen during UNP govern this country. They are blood suckers and scavengers who has no respect for human beings. Rajithaya, Mangalaya, Champaka and the UNPER’S act and do things like underworld mafia. They talk and act like saints who hasn’t done any wrongdoings. These traitors should be brought to books for their crimes against humanity one day. Justice should be fair to all. Charles JO is the only solution and could be trusted than any other party or leadership so work hard Sinhala buddhists to make our country great again under the leadership of Mahinda Rajapaksa our great President. Don’t be fooled by fairytale stories and lies spread by UNPER’S and Sirisena. Sirisena is UNP and UNP is Sirisena. UNP created him and he will stick with them for ever. SLFPER’S should not believe this guy for a dime. He was a double crosser and a traitor to the party and to his leadership once a upon a time. Join to save our motherland and the Sinhala buddhists and the buddhist culture in this country.
July 22nd, 2017 at 10:54 pm
Like Ranjit I think that MR has certain plans which he won’t divulge until the proper time comes. He is in the canvas of the political boxing ring facing opponents, while we are mere spectators, most of us far from the ringside. Only the boxer knows what trick to play, what manoeuvre to make or what sham movement to feint and so on, as the changing circumstances within the ring dictate. Of course, it can’t be denied that our comments from outside also count. A veteran politician like Mahinda cannot be unaware of this.
July 23rd, 2017 at 2:49 am
Ranjit and Vaisrawana, I think still it is Mahinda Rajapakse and the JO that could save Sri Lanka from being a failed State. Dilrook too though critical of the JO is a good political analyst. He too trusts Mahinda and JO but perhaps we are wrong and they have reason to do what they are doing.
But people like Ben Emmerson are not trustworthy lawyers. They can manupulate law for their benefit. The Westerners are not that honest and just, as we have been told. They are an unscrupulous, manupulators and an egoists lot. They are concerned about themselves and will do any thing to stop poor countries from developing Cobin the Labour leader of UK is accusing Sri Lanka armed forces of torture of Tamils. We know all that is not true . They can unflinchingly lie. We saw how Blair presented a false report to make USA declare war against Iraq.I am sure Ranil gets advice from these Western rogue lawyers.
Therefore, I am afraid that there is the likely hood, that even without the full complement of the Parliamentarians in the Constitutional Assembly this hybrid Sirisena Ranil Government will get the Constitution passed, and the JO being in the CA despite NFF leaving the CA will strengthen Yahapalanaya claim to have presented the draft Constitution to the Constitutional Assembly.
If the JO leaves the CA with its 46 members (as NFF has already left the CA)then the Sirisena-Ranil Government cannot pass the New Constitution.
July 23rd, 2017 at 9:14 am
Charles,
A few days ago AFTER the NFF led by Wimal Weerawansa left the Constitutional Assembly, MR held an emergency meeting of the JO to discuss the corresponding JO strategy on the issue.
After the meeting was held, he told the media that the remaining JO members would remain within the Constitutional Assembly while the NFF-part of the JO leaves it. The overall strategy is to attack and prevent the passage of the New Constitution from both without and within the Constitutional Assembly. He said that they agreed not to fosclose their strategy more than that.
Like you, I called for the JO to leave he Constitutional Assembly. But perhaps, as MR says, a better strategy is to attack it from both inside and outside the Assembly, without allowing the Yamapalanaya FREE REIN to do whatever they please without any OVERSIGHT, depending SOLELY on OPPOSITION from outside and reliance on a referendum which may or may not be held as the Yamapalanaya decides. By leaving the Assembly, the JO would be BLIND to the maneuvering of the DESHA-DROHI ROOKADA Yamapalanaya that CANNOT BE TRUSTED on anything.
MR also said that 17 SLFP-Sirisena MP’s would LEAVE the goverment and he even laughingly said that as many as HALF of the Sinhala-Buddhist UNP MP’s may also DEFECT!
The latter may be a pie-in-the-sky FOND HOPE of MR, but he knows far more than I of the INTENSE horse-trading that is going on right now to engineer the DEMISE of the Yamapalanaya!
All I can do is to PRAY for the TRIVIDARATNAYA to HELP THE PATRIOTIC FORCES of Sri Lanka to OUST this DESHADROHI WADA-BARI PATA-GATHI ROOKADA Yamapalana government IMMEDIATELY before they can execute their plans to DESTROY our Motherland!
July 23rd, 2017 at 8:42 pm
MORE UNPRODUCTIVE elected POLITICIANS is the LAST THING Sri Lanka NEEDS!
Instead of STREAMLINING GOVERNANCE and REDUCING the NUMBER of these UNPRODUCTIVE PARASITES, we are going to BURY OURSELVES under MORE and MORE bureaucrats on the PUBLIC DOLE!
Is this the Yamapalanya/UNP STRATEGY to win ALL future ELECTIONS, by BRIBING MORE PEOPLE with Govt Jobs??
May God help us; WE NEVER LEARN!
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Number of LG members will double: Minister
DailyMirror.lk
2017-07-24
Number of members elected to 336 Local Government bodies under the new electoral system will be doubled while the number of Local Government bodies will be increased by one Pradeshiya Sabha the Local Government and Provincial Councils Minister Faiszer Musthapha said yesterday.
Accordingly the number of members to be elected to the Municipal Councils, Urban Councils and Pradeshiya Sabhas is to be increased to 8,825 from the current 4,486, and the new number of Local Government bodies will be 336.
Under the newly introduced Local Government Electoral (Amendment) Act no. 22 of 2012 more than 2,200 women members representing 25% of the total number of elected members are expected to be elected and a new Pradeshiya Sabha will be established at Millennia.
“I expect party leaders will approve the amendments to the Act at the next session of Parliament enabling the government to conduct Local Government polls in this year. We will have to go for the polls before November as the Elections Department is scheduled to conduct GCE O/L examination during this time. The Elections Department also needs a minimum 65 days to conduct polls since the Gazetting of the Local Government election,” Minister Musthapha added.
“The delimitation commission report released in August 2015 following passing of the Act in 2012 was full of errors, mistakes and inconsistencies and was vehemently opposed by minority parties as well as the SLFP and the UNP. If we are to conduct Local Government polls under the new electoral system, we should have first rectified the blunders that had been made by the Delimitation Commission in addition to finalizing the marking of boundaries of Local Government bodies. That is why I appointed the five member official committee headed by Asoka Peiris to look into the issue with the consent of all political parties,” Minister Musthapha emphasized.
If the government postponed the Local Government polls accordingly, the elections to 23 Municipal Councils, 41 Urban Councils and 272 Pradeshiya Sabhas will have to be held on a same day as all current Local Government bodies numbering 335 would have completed their term of office by then.
Many Local Government bodies completed their term of office on March, 31, 2015, some others on July 31st of that year and few others on October 16, 2015. Another few Local Government bodies completed their term of office on August 24, 2013 and they are being run under special commissioners or Secretaries.
All Local Government bodies in the Western Province, including the Colombo, Kotte- Sri Jayewardenepura, Dehivala – Mt. Lavinia, Negombo and Gampaha completed five year term on October. (Sandun A Jayasekera)