Sri Lanka has had eight Executive Presidents since then and at least some of them, especially in more recent times have been on the brink of being ‘mad men’ and that is why the country is in the plight it finds itself in today.
It suffices to say that four of Sri Lanka’s eight Presidents- Chandrika Kumaratunga, Mahinda Rajapaksa, Maithripala Sirisena and last but most certainly not the least Ranil Wickremesinghe- all promised to either abolish the Executive Presidency or diminish its powers.
To give credit where it is due, it was only Maithripala Sirisena who did so. That is by introducing the 19th Amendment to the Constitution.
The recent ‘aragalaya’ that ousted Gotabaya Rajapaksa from the Presidency had many parties and participants but they all had a common theme apart from their slogan ‘Gota Go home’: reduce the powers of the Executive Presidency.
The story goes that when the architect of the current Constitution, J.R. Jayewardene presented a draft of the 1978 Constitution, Lanka Samasamaja Party stalwart Dr. N.M. Perera asked what would happen if the Presidency went to a ‘mad man’?
Sri Lanka has had eight Executive Presidents since then and at least some of them, especially in more recent times have been on the brink of being ‘mad men’ and that is why the country is in the plight it finds itself in today.
It suffices to say that four of Sri Lanka’s eight Presidents- Chandrika Kumaratunga, Mahinda Rajapaksa, Maithripala Sirisena and last but most certainly not the least Ranil Wickremesinghe- all promised to either abolish the Executive Presidency or diminish its powers.
To give credit where it is due, it was only Maithripala Sirisena who did so. That is by introducing the 19th Amendment to the Constitution for which he toiled hard, spending long hours in Parliament personally speaking to MPs to persuade them to vote for it. The result was a near unanimous endorsement of the 19th Amendment, with just one vote, that of Sarath Weerasekara, against it.
Sirisena would, of course, later undo all the good work he did with the 19th Amendment by arrogating more powers to himself, dismissing then Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and dissolving Parliament, the latter act being declared ‘unconstitutional’ by the Supreme Court, the only President to be thus reprimanded in our country.
Now, few remember that, Ranil Wickremesinghe, sitting in the opposition benches when the ‘aragalaya’ first began in March, was waxing lyrical about reducing the powers of the Executive Presidency. In fact, he repeated those sentiments soon after becoming President saying that the passage of a constitutional amendment that would prune presidential powers would be a priority for him.
What is before Parliament now in the form of the draft 22nd Amendment is not the 19th Amendment as it was first enacted but a much watered-down version. For instance, the powers of the President in appointing ministers are to listed as ‘in consultation with the Prime Minister’ instead of being ‘on the advice of the Prime Minister’ as originally envisaged.
However, even this diluted version is unlikely to pass muster in a Parliament where the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) still commands a reduced but overall majority. This is a reflection of the changing political climate in the country.
Three months ago, at the height of the ‘aragalaya’, members of the SLPP were worried about appearing in public, concerned for their own safety. Such was the level of anger and resentment against them. Now, not only are they back in the limelight, they are suggesting that the presidential system of government has to stay.
This is where Ranil Wickremesinghe’ tactics must come under close scrutiny. Having publicly committed to reducing the powers of the Executive Presidency at the tail end of Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s tenure, he now finds that he has to keep his pledge but that would mean reducing the vast powers at his disposal.
The past two and a half months of the Wickremesinghe Presidency has shown us that he is not shy to use draconian powers. He ordered a crackdown on the ‘aragalaya’ and sent some of its main activists to remand prison under the guise of the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA). He declared a state of emergency on a few occasions. He even issued gazette notifications on high security zones, being compelled to cancel them later.
If Wickremesinghe wishes to stifle the 22nd Amendment, he has found a ready and willing ally. That is the SLPP parliamentary group. Still dreaming of the day when one of the Rajapaksas- presumably Namal- will be back leading the nation, they do not wish to reduce the powers of the President. Now they are openly stating that they will oppose ‘certain provisions’ of the proposed 22nd Amendment.
Among them, notably, is the provision that bars dual citizens from holding elected office. With many SLPP parliamentarians still being beholden to Basil Rajapaksa, they desperately want this Rajapaksa sibling, who resigned ignominiously with the sobriquet ‘kaputa’ assigned to him, back in Parliament. They are stating that they will oppose this clause of the 22nd Amendment, no matter what.
They also want any clause that allows the President to dissolve Parliament early modified. This will ensure that Wickremesinghe cannot call for early elections. In fact, that is a pledge they extracted from him when he was seeking their vote to become Sri Lanka’s first Executive President to be elected after a contest in Parliament.
As much as Wickremesinghe has some difficulties working with the current lot of SLPP ministers, he must prefer co-habiting with them rather than having a group dominated by the current opposition which is likely to emerge as the new Cabinet if general elections are to be held now.
So, the scenario is perfect for Ranil Wickremesinghe. He has already asked that the 22nd Amendment be presented to Parliament under the guidance of Justice Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe. The draft has also been referred to the Supreme Court which found some clauses inconsistent with the Constitution and recommended amendments. All that is now left to be done is its passage through Parliament with a two-thirds majority.
That is very unlikely, however. Without the support of the SLPP, the 22nd Amendment will be still-born, not having a simple majority let alone a two-thirds majority. Ranil Wickremesinghe can claim that he did his bit and did his best but was thwarted by the ruling party’s MPs. The clamour for the 22nd Amendment will die down, until it is revived before the next general or presidential election, whichever is held first.
The 22nd Amendment to the Constitution, whatever the intentions were when it was first drafted, has now been reduced to a charade, a drama that will be played out in the next few days. It could have been classed as a comedy of errors- if not for the fact that it will be a tragedy for the nation.
