Reality of the Constitutional Council
Following passage of 19A:
by Uditha Kumarasinghe
The passage of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution paved the way
for the setting up of the Constitutional Council (CC) and 11 independent
commissions to oversee the appointments and the operation of eleven
institutions of the State. The CC which was originally introduced under
the 17th Amendment to the Constitution on October 3, 2001 was
deactivated due to the introduction of 18th Amendment during the tenure
of the former UPFA Government.
 Although various political parties urged the re-implementation of the
CC and independent commissions, it was confined to mere words as the
former UPFA Government didn't have a genuine desire to fulfill the
pledge. The CC and independent commissions finally became a reality due
to the initiatives taken by President Maithripala Sirisena to implement
the 19 th Amendment to the Constitution.
Political parties
According to the 19th Amendment, the CC will compromise of the Prime
Minister, Speaker, Opposition Leader, a person appointed by the
President, five persons appointed by the President on nominations made
by the Prime Minister and Opposition Leader and one person nominated by
a majority of the Members of Parliament belonging to political parties
and independent groups, other than the political parties or independent
groups to which the Prime Minister and the Opposition Leader represent.
However, during the debate on the 19tth Amendment to the Constitution
on April 28, the main Opposition UPFA objected to the composition of the
CC, claiming seven of the 10 members should be Parliamentarians.
Earlier, the proposed amendment suggested the inclusion of seven
intellectuals with the Speaker, Prime Minister and Opposition Leader.
Finally President Maithripala Sirisena intervened to resolve the crisis
over the composition of the CC and entertain the demand made by the
Opposition.
Nominations
The Speaker shall be the Chairman of the Council. It shall be the
duty of the Speaker to ensure that nominations for appointments under
sub-paragraph (e) or sub-paragraph (f) of paragraph (1) are made,
whenever an occasion for such nominations arises. On the dissolution of
Parliament, notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (2) of Article
64, the Speaker shall continue to hold office as a member of the
Council, until a Member of Parliament is elected to be the Speaker under
paragraph (1) of the aforesaid Article.
Notwithstanding the dissolution of Parliament, the Prime Minister and
the Opposition Leader shall continue to hold office as members of the
Council, until such time after a General Election following such
dissolution, a Member of Parliament is appointed as Prime Minister or
recognised as the Opposition Leader in Parliament.
Every member of the Council appointed shall hold office for a period
of three years from the date of appointment unless the member earlier
resigns from his or her office by writing addressed to the President or
removed from office by the President in consultation with the Prime
Minister and Opposition Leader.
The appointments made by the President shall be communicated to the
Speaker. No person shall be appointed by the President as the Chairman
or a member of any of the commissions specified in the schedule to this
Article, except on are commendation of the Council.
Under the CC eleven independent commissions are to be set up which
includes the Election Commission, Public Service Commission, National
Police Commission, Audit Service Commission, Human Rights Commission of
Sri Lanka, the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or
Corruption, Finance Commission, Delimitation Commission, National
Procurement Commission, University Grants Commission and Official
Languages Commission. No person shall be appointed by the President to
any of the offices specified in the schedule to this articles, unless
such appointment has been approved by the Council upon a recommendation
made to the Council by the President.
In the discharge of its function relating to the appointment of
Judges of the Supreme Court and the President and Judges of the Court of
Appeal, the council shall obtain the views of the Chief Justice, the
Minister in charge of the subject of Justice, the Attorney General and
the President of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka.
The CC shall meet at least twice every month and as often as may be
necessary to discharge the functions assigned to the Council by the
provisions of this chapter or by any other law, and such meetings shall
be summoned by the Secretary General to the Council on thedirection of
the Chairman of the Council. The Council shall once inevery three months
submit to the President a report of its activities during the preceding
three months. The Council shall perform anddischarge such other duties
and functions as may be imposed or assigned to the Council by the
constitution or by any other written law.
Jurisdiction
According to 19th Amendment, the Council shall have the power to make
rules relating to the performance and discharge of its duties and
function.
All such rules shall be published in the Gazette and be placed before
Parliament. Subject to the provisions of Article 126, no court shall
have the power or jurisdiction to entertain, hear or decide or callin
question, on any ground whatsoever, any decision of the Council or any
approval or recommendation made by the Council, which decision,approval
or recommendation shall be final and conclusive for all purposes. |
