Constitution cannot be changed overnight - Prof. Wiswa Warnapala

President Mahinda Rajapaksa will certainly be elected for the second time, said Higher Education Minister Prof. W. A. Wiswa Warnapala in an exclusive interview with the Sunday Observer. He also outlined the constitutional process for changing the Constitution, in the backdrop of Opposition demands for the abolition of the Executive Presidency.

by Mohammed NAALIR

Higher Education Minister Prof. Wiswa Warnapala.

Q- Are you confident President Mahinda Rajapaksa will win the forth coming Presidential election?

A- Realising this fact not only the public but also the Parliamentarians, Provincial Councillors, Pradeshiya Sabha members and strong supporters of the Opposition have joined hands with President Mahinda Rajapaksa. There is no obstacle for the victory of President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

The President will definitely win the election for the second time. President J. R. Jayewardene was elected for the second term. President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga was elected to her second term, President Ranasinghe Premadasa was elected to his second term. Therefore the second term is virtually assured.

Q- Is there a clause in the Constitution for a Presidential election before the completion of the first term of the incumbent President?

A: According to former President Jayewardene’s amendment the Executive President during his first term can call a Presidential election after four years in Office. Based on this amendment President Mahinda Rajapaksa also contests in the Presidential election after completing four years in Office.

The question to be asked is who is the [main] opponent. Those who contested the past Presidential elections possessed enough political experience. As this is the most important election in the country the candidate must have been in the political field but unfortunately he is an inexperienced person who was brought up with military traditions. He has been a military man for nearly 40 years. It is doubtful that he can provide good governance. All military people who got into power this way latter formed military regimes and destroyed their States. Those States became the failed States because of they couldn’t govern the people in a democratic way.

Common candidate General Sarath Fonseka’s main platform is the abolition of Executive Presidency. But Executive Presidency is an institution with enormous power. The architects of the 1978 Constitution studied the American Presidential system, French presidential system and some other Western countries. The President is the Commander in Chief, the Head of Government, he appoints Cabinet Ministers and leading Government officials like the Attorney General.

Now such an Institution is to be handed over to a person who has been brought up in a military tradition. It is a very dangerous trend for the country. We are fundamentally a democratic country.

The election of a military person will endanger the survival of democracy. In case General Sarath Fonseka is elected President, there is a possibility of military rule in the country. The United National Party (UNP) formulated in 1946 produced a galaxy of good rulers like D.S. Senanayake, Sir John Kotelawela, J.R. Jayewardene and R. Premadasa. This is the background of the UNP.

Now this party is politically bankrupt. The party is now unable to produce an acceptable candidate to contest in the Presidential election. This party is declining day by day. They are in political disarray.

The UNP leader is unable to attract the ordinary voter. The rural voter base of the UNP is eroding. They thought Sarath Fonseka was the ideal choice to fill the gap and to safeguard the rural voter base.

They wanted a person who could make use of the war victory. They don’t love Fonseka but they wanted him to fill the gap. Fonseka too has been entertaining this idea. He has shown this kind of political ambition. He cannot take such an important decision within just two weeks.

General Fonseka cannot be a common candidate because there is no united, strong common opposition. It is a divided opposition which is trying to promote a common candidate. How can a divided opposition put forward a common candidate ?

The UNP is disunited. Their prominent supporters have joined hands with President Rajapaksa. The JVP is also a divided party because some of their supporters and leading men have left the party. They were the people who led the youth of our country towards insurrections in 1971 and 1989.

All the leaders of the JVP including Somawansa Amarasinghe are inexperienced. The UNP led JVP coalition is going to elect General Sarath Fonseka who has 40 years experience in the Military. The JVP will want to establish a military oriented regime in this country. Since 1971 they have been violating fundamental human rights. The UNP wants to save their skin by promoting this man.

Even if Fonseka is elected, the Constitution cannot be changed overnight. According to the 1978 Constitution there is an amending procedure incorporated in the Constitution. If the Executive Presidency is to be abolished there is a criteria which has to be followed. It has to be passed with a two thirds majority.

Then you have to go for a national referendum. It will take a lot of time. The first stage is a two thirds majority in Parliament and the second a referendum. Then what next ? you have to draft a new Constitution.

We are not sure whether a two thirds majority could be obtained on the basis of the existing electoral system. What is the guarantee to any Government that they will obtain a two thirds majority ? The Constitution cannot be changed with a simple majority.

When you look at the electoral experience of this country on the basis of the existing electoral system no party can get a two-thirds majority. It is always a hung Parliament.

When I entered Parliament in 1994 and 2000 we were able to govern with a majority of just seat. Now we are Governing with the people who crossed over. We became a majority Government with the crossover of people from the opposition to the Government side. Now we have a working majority. Under the Proportional Representation (PR) system a two thirds majority cannot obtained by a single party.

Q- What is the influence wielded by minor parties in Sri Lanka’s political system?

A- There were only seven or political parties in 1970. Ours was really a bi-party system. Power alternated between the SLFP led coalition and the UNP led coalition.

That prevailed before the introduction of the PR system. With the introduction of PR the number of parties grew.

Today there are 44 political parties in Sri Lanka. Some of them are registered, some unregistered. So there are a lot of minor parties.