Constitutional Council:

Nominations after Vesak

by Uditha Kumarasinghe

The appointment of members to the Constitutional Council (CC) will take place after the final amendments proposed during the debate are consolidated and the Speaker certifies the final draft bill.

At present, the Attorney General's Department, the Legal Draughtsman's Department and senior parliamentary offcials are drafting the final document containing these amendments, to be submitted to the Speaker.

"It will take about two days to finalise. Apponitments to be the CC will be after that," Justice Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe told the Sunday Observer.

Top sources said nominations to the CC will be considered post Vesak. According to the 19th Amendment, the CC consists of the Prime Minister, Speaker, Opposition Leader, one person appointed by the President, five persons appointed by the President on the nominations made by Prime Minister and Opposition Leader and one person nominated by the agreement of

the majority of the Members of Parliament belonging to political parties or independent groups, other than the respective political parties or independent groups to which the Prime Minister and the Opposition Leader represent. During the marathon debate on the 19tth Amendment to the Constitution on April 28, President Maithripala Sirisena intervened to resolve the crisis over the composition of the CC. Members of the opposition objected to the composition of the CC, claiming seven members out of 10 members should be parliamentarians. Earlier, the proposed amendment suggested the inclusion of seven intellectuals and the Speaker, Prime Minister and Opposition Leader.

A committee was appointed to resolve the deadlock. Meanwhile, the Bar Association of Sri Lanka has brought to the notice of the President that there were moves to dilute the provisions of the 19th Amendment by changing the composition of the Constitution Council.