Ceylon Today Editorial

JR’s creation in flames

28 September 2016

Yesterday, this newspaper reported that two British constitutional experts were in town this week to help the government to formulate a new Constitution.

A new Constitution has been in the pipeline since the advent of the new Unity Government comprising President Maithripala Sirisena from the UPFA/SLFP coalition and Premier Ranil Wickremesinghe from the UNF/UNP coalition, last year.

As reported on a daily on its 11 December 2015 issue, which, quoting Wickremesinghe, said, that the pivots of the new Constitution would be power devolution, electoral reform and the replacement of the executive presidential system.

Due to space constraints, this editorial will dwell on the replacement of the executive presidential system.

Replacement of the executive presidential system would be driving the final nail on the coffin of Wickremesinghe's uncle J.R. Jayewardene's workmanship, who 50 years ago, outlining his vision for an executive presidential style of government, said, "....The executive is chosen directly by the people and is not dependent on the legislature during its period of existence, for a specified number of years. Such an executive is a strong executive seated in power for a fixed number of years, not subject to the whims and fancies of an elected legislature; not afraid to take correct but unpopular decisions because of censure from its parliamentary party...."

Jayewardene made this statement in 1966 as the guest of honour at the then Ceylon Association for the Advancement of Science annual sessions, where, Jayewardene, was the Minister of State of the Dudley Senanayake Government.

However, he had to wait for 12 years till 1978, with the enactment of the Second Republican Constitution that year, to see his dream realize, with he himself being at the helm, as Sri Lanka's first Executive President.

Nevertheless, his nephew Wickremesinghe is now trying to tear down this Constitution and replace it with it a brand new one.

Nonetheless, Jayewardene's dream of an executive presidency was due to the ruination caused to governments, which since independence and at least up to 1965, in which year the Senanayake Government was elected to power,were ruled by coalitions, thereby having to bend to the 'whim and fancy' of coalition partners in order for the lead parties which formed such coalitions, merely to stay on in power.

Nevertheless, the executive presidential system of government, since its introduction in 1978, was subjected to abuse and reached the zenith of such abuse, especially during the time Mahinda Rajapaksa, the immediately preceding President, was in power during the period November 2005 to January 2015.

However, the call for the replacement of the Executive Presidency is not something new. It was on the premise of this promise, that Ms. Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga's coalition was elected to power in August 1994. But once in power, Kumaratunga, enjoying the plums of office, continued to retain the Executive Presidency.

Similarly, in 2005, Rajapaksa was elected to power with the promise of abolishing the Executive Presidency. But once in power, he not only retained that system of government, but further reinforced its powers.

In fairness to Sirisena, no sooner he was elected to power in January 2015, he brought in a series of laws to whittle down the Executive Presidency, by restoring its two terms (which Rajapaksa had changed to virtual perpetuity) and also the independent commissions.

There is a school of thought which believes that 19 amendments to the present Constitution are enough and the country, to 'go forward', needs a new Constitution. It's with that thinking that a new Constitution, sans an Executive Presidency, has been parroted by the Unity Government.