Local Government elections:

New rallying point for Joint Opposition

by Uditha Kumarasinghe

The Joint Opposition is agitating that the government should hold Local Government elections immediately and gazette the date for fresh polls by March 31. The frontliners of the Joint Opposition said President Maithripala Sirisena had gazetted the local authorities with new wards in September 2015 and, therefore, the Ministers without making sweeping statements should adhere to the gazette notification. They said the on-going delimitation process is a way of delaying and depriving the people of their democratic elections.

Faizer Musthapha

Dallas Alahapperuma	Dinesh Gunawardene

However, Provincial Councils and Local Government Minister Faiszer Musthapha said his responsibility is to ensure democracy and mete out justice to every community through delimitation, rather than merely rushing in for an early election. Those who clamour for elections before March 31 should realise that it is not practicable, he said. Minister Musthapha told the Sunday Observer certain quarters are trying to interpret that this government is scared of elections. If President Maithripala Sirisena took the challenge of defeating former President Mahinda Rajapaksa at the last presidential election, he is not sacred to hold the Local Government election.

I would like to facilitate any discussion to educate the Joint Opposition on the difficulties that I have faced in view of the 2012 Delimitation Report which was presented to the President in August, 2015. The Minister said it took three years to hand over the former Delimitation Committee Report and there was a huge public protest against it.

‘AC cubicle’

He said the former Delimitation Committee Report had been prepared in an ‘AC cubicle’. There are 4,833 wards and there will be a minimum change of nearly 2,000 wards in terms of the appeal tribunals and this shows how unjust the former delimitation process was, he said.

The former Delimitation Committee has also not obtained the views of the public or provincial political authorities. “Untying something which is already done is more difficult than doing something new. I would humbly request the Joint Opposition to read Act No 22 of 2012 and understand the difficulty that I faced as the Minister of Local Government to fulfil this task.”

Asked as to what led the government to dissolve Local Government bodies prematurely, the Minister said it is the prerogative of the President who decided to dissolve the local bodies. Because until we started the delimitation, I did not expect that half of the wards will have to be changed. Earlier, the government was to hold the elections by April.

When various quarters pointed their fingers, I had to apprise the President and the Prime Minister that I don’t wish to suffer the direct consequences and I wanted time and space to do my job properly. The President and the Prime Minister granted permission for this, he said.

According to the Minister, the Delimitation Committee has received over 2,000 appeals. I would like to ask those who are clamouring for an early deadline whether we could hold the Local Government polls without entertaining these appeals. We have been entrusted to provide a national solution to this issue. However, the government’s intention is to conduct Local Government elections as early as possible. We would try our best to hold Local Government elections before the end of this year.

At present delimitation has been completed in Gampaha, Kegalle, Kurunegala, Galle, Anuradhapura and the Puttalam districts while it has to be completed in another 19 districts - seven districts in the North and the East.

It took three months to complete the delimitation in six districts. Therefore, a certain time-frame is needed to conduct the delimitation in the remaining 19 districts.

Minister Musthapha said his responsibility is to ensure democracy and mete out justice to every community rather than merely calling for an early election. Those who clamour to hold elections before March 31 should realise that this is not practicable.

Else there is no political reason to postpone the elections. Before taking to the streets, those who make a big hue and cry for elections before March 31 should seriously consider as to why three years were taken to prepare the former Delimitation Committee Report and whether the shortcomings in that report should be rectified or not.

At present certain quarters have turned delimitation into a political issue. Every citizen has a right to go to the Supreme Court and complain about the violation of his rights. As the Minister in charge of Provincial Councils and Local Government, I would also present facts to the Supreme Court on the reasons which led to the delay to conduct the Local Government polls.

Contradictory statements

MEP Leader and UPFA Colombo District Parliamentarian Dinesh Gunawardena told the Sunday Observer that the Government has been making contradictory statements over the last few months regarding Local Government elections. They have dissolved 90 percent of the Local Government institutions, and at present they are run by officials without elected representatives. The extension given prior to holding elections expires on March 31.

According to the Municipality, Urban Council and Pradeshiya Sabha Ordinances, elections have to be held for these Local Government bodies on or March 31 midnight. We as the Joint Opposition also made representations to the Elections Commission. The undemocratic way of running local government institutions has deprived nearly 10,000 members to be elected and this is the key issue today.

The Joint Opposition will agitate on behalf of the ratepayers who are being deprived of elections. President Maithripala Sirisena gazetted the local authorities with the new wards in September, 2015. Where does the law stand? Ministers make statements without going by the gazette by President Maithripala Sirisena, he said.

MP Gunawardena said, “That is why we are saying that elections have to be held immediately and Delimitation Committees are ways of delaying and depriving the people of democratic elections. If the government passes the deadline of March 31 and the Election Commission becomes invalid for not using its powers the Joint Opposition with the people irrespective of political loyalties will pressurise the government to hold elections. It is not only the Joint Opposition, we too will agitate with the support of all candidates with other parties.”

Law

A senior official of the Election Commission told the Sunday Observer that the Joint Opposition which met the Election Commission Chairman Mahinda Deshapriya on February 29 requested him to call for elections. They appealed to the chairman of the Commission to conduct the polls before March 31. But the chairman said he was not in a position to conduct the polls before March 31 because delimitation is still going on under the Local Authorities Election Act. We are not in a position to conduct the elections because the amendments which introduced a mixed election system under Act No: 22 of 2012 contained some technical errors in some of its provisions. Soon after the enactment of the Act, we stipulated it in our document and sent it to the relevant authority to amend the law. They have taken steps to amend the law and now it is in its last stage. The Commission’s Chairman had told the Joint Opposition members that he is not in a position to call for elections until delimitation is completed and the technical errors of the amended Act are rectified.

UPFA Matara district parliamentarian Dullas Alahapperuma said the Government through the dissolution of local government institutions and without holding elections on the due date has violated the Pradeshiya Sabha Act, Election Act and the Constitution.Some Pradeshiya Sabhas were dissolved while the tenure of other Pradeshiya Sabhas were extended. The tenure of Urban Councils were extended by six months without dissolving them. According to Clause 12 of the Constitution, this is unequal treatment and a blatant violation of the Constitution.

After the Pradeshiya Sabha elections are held, there is an interim period until the newly elected chairmen assume office.

The officials can be vested responsibility during this interim period. This is why we went to the Supreme Court complaining that the government had violated the Pradeshiya Sabha Act No:15 of 1987, Election Act and the Constitution. On Wednesday, (March 2) the case was postponed until April 1. Postponing the Local Government elections is the biggest blow against the good governance concept. If delimitation was not completed why were the local government bodies dissolved? They should have been allowed to continue till March 31 this year. Elections have been postponed with the ulterior motive of rendering their political opponents powerless.

“We urge the government that if they can’t hold elections on the due date they should restore the local government bodies,” he said.