Govt confident of securing two-third majority:

New Constitution before year’s end

by Uditha KUMARASINGHE

The Government will introduce a new Constitution before the end of this year as it is fully confident of securing a two-third majority in Parliament.

The proposed Constitution would be more favourable to the country while it would further ensure good governance by removing the obstacles faced by the country’s development process, informed Government sources told the Sunday Observer.

According to the overall result of the 2010 general election, the Government would obtain nearly 145 seats in Parliament. Therefore, the Government needs another five seats to obtain a two-third majority.

The Government is fully confident that it would obtain these five seats easily under the program formulated by it, the sources said.

The UPFA created history at the April 8 general election winning a huge majority close to two-third in the seventh Parliament.

The UPFA Government would go into history as the only political party which secured the highest number of seats under the Proportional Representation System. Of the 180 seats decided on district-wise voting, the UPFA secured 117 seats. The UNP backed alliance won only 46 seats.

The re-poll in the Nawalapitiya and Trincomalee electorates will be held on April 20 and the results will be released on April 21.

The Commissioner of Elections Dayananda Dissanayake annulled the results of 37 polling centres at Nawalapitiya in the Kandy district and one in the Trincomalee district citing election malpractices.

The composition of the new Parliament would be known when the results of the 37 polling centres in Nawalapitiya and one in Trincomalee are released on April 21.

According to Government sources, the inaugural session of the seventh Parliament is scheduled for April 22. President Mahinda Rajapaksa will address the inaugural session of the new Parliament on April 22 at 11.00 a.m.

Informed Government sources said that the President has already finalised the new Cabinet and is now making the final touches. The next Cabinet will comprise 35 Ministers.

Several new faces are tipped to be given key portfolios. Before the President announces the new Cabinet, he will meet all the elected UPFA MPs at Temple Trees today.

Steps will be taken to appoint a new Speaker at the inaugural session of Parliament.

Thereafter, all the elected MPs will take their oaths before the Speaker. Steps will also be taken to appoint a Deputy Speaker and a Deputy Chairman of Committees to Parliament.

Sixty-four new MPs have been elected to the new Parliament.

Several new MPs are also expected to be elected from the Kandy and Trincomalee districts when the re-poll for 37 polling centres in Nawalapitiya and one in Trincomalee is held.