Polls chief faces stiff task

Among those present were party bigwigs Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickremanayake, Ministers Mangala Samaraweera, D. M. Jayaratne and newcomer Anura Bandaranaike. President Kumaratunga, emphasising the need to have a dialogue with the LTTE, invited the rebel group to the conference table. But she qualified her statement by adding a string that it should give up its demand for a separate state.

In other words, the President appears to be willing to consider the demand for self-determination which is one step short of a separate state _ a demand put forward by a majority of Tamil parties.

If the Provincial Councils system is not acceptable to the LTTE and a majority of the Tamil people, the only other solution one can think of is a federal setup, which is just one step short of a fully fledged state.

The TULF recently said it was confident that the LTTE would soon give up its call for a separate state and settle for a solution short of it _ meaning a federal state encompassing the Northern and Eastern provinces.

The aborted draft constitution of August 2000 presented in Parliament by President Kumaratunga reflected features of a federal state though it was not expressly said in it. 

Federalism is a taboo word for Sinhala extremists. The framers of the 2000 draft in a bid to circumvent the problem, adopted a terminological tactic, thanks to UNP's Constitutional expert K. N. Choksy .

The PA and the UNP agreed on a majority of the provisions in that draft, but the sore point was the abolition of the executive presidency. The UNP wanted it abolished upon the constitution coming into force while the PA wanted it continued under some transitional provisions for another five years on the basis that President Kumaratunga had obtained a mandate from the people at the December 1999 elections.

This constitutional exercise ended in tatters with the PA finally withdrawing it in the face of opposition from various quarters.

But what was evident in this exercise is that both the PA and the UNP were thinking on the same wavelength when it comes to devolution proposals or the ethnic problems, though there might be some differences in their approaches.

It is, therefore, important for both parties not to take undue political advantage from what each party is proposing to solve the ethnic strife. It is, too, sensitive a problem for a political group to exploit as it has already caused immense damage to the country and its socio-economic fabric.

There has to be some sort of interim solution before a permanent solution is found. The interim administration proposed by the UNP is no cause for alarm since the present problem could only be settled through a federal setup, which is short of an Eelam.

As everybody is aware, a majority of Sri Lankans are fed up with the ongoing conflict and the most essential commodity the people aspire today is peace, a lasting peace, which would enable the people to enjoy the fruits of representative democracy in a developing and vibrant economy.

Even now, it is not too late for any government to devise an acceptable solution. 

If the two major parties agree on it, Sinhala hardliners would be compelled to say yes with reluctance though such an arrangement will change the nature of the state and the political landscape. For greater good and wellbeing of the people and generations to come, it is essential that we take pragmatic steps towards solving this burning issue.

The PA while trying to solve the ethnic crisis by way of a dialogue and a military push, proposes in its manifesto a new constitution to replace the present constitution.

The PA manifesto states:

"In order to fully guarantee the democratic freedoms of the people of Sri Lanka, it is necessary to abolish the 1978 constitution. We will introduce a new constitution, which has been subject to the widest possible discussion among the people and has the acceptance of the majority of the people in this country. We seek your approval as the voters of this country to use our victory at this election as a legal mandate for the purpose of introducing a new constitution."

If the people feel that the executive presidency should be abolished and the present constitution should be repealed to pave way for a new constitution, the people will tend to vote for the PA. But what is more important for the people right now is to put into office a party which can manage the economy well and find a lasting solution to the North-East problem. 

That the UNP can manage the economy better than the PA is clearly reflected in recent opinion polls. But could the UNP solve the North-East problem all alone? It is difficult to envisage that any party could handle this task alone because no party would be able to obtain the necessary parliamentary majority for the purpose. 

Some say the proportional representation system of election is a stumbling block for a party to obtain a two thirds majority in Parliament. But others point out that the framers of the present constitution introduced the PR system so that there would be bipartisanship in solving important issues.

A constitutional amendment under this could only be effected with the help of the opposition. Therefore, it is obvious that President J. R. Jayewardene's intention was to have consensus politics rather than confrontational politics.

However today, we see acrimonious politics between the PA and the UNP as has been reflected in their election manifestos. For instance, the PA manifesto in its Sinhala version explicitly states thus:

"There is an important aspect that the people should realise in the run up to the December 5 general elections that it was the 1978 Constitution which has introduced the Executive Presidency to this country. The incumbent President is left with a balance period of five years in her second term. There cannot be a separate power block in Parliament devoid of the President. The President occupies the foremost place in this constitutional set up. It is the President who has the power to appoint the Prime Minister and the Cabinet of Ministers. It is not mandatory to consult the Prime Minister in appointing the other members of the cabinet. It, too, is not mandatory to appoint a member of the party which secures a majority of Parliamentary seats. It is the government of the President and she is the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces."

This statement included in the PA manifesto needs careful examination.

Article 43 (3) of the Constitution states that the President should appoint as prime minister a member of Parliament who in his or her opinion commands the confidence of Parliament.

Article 44 (1) states that the President shall from time to time in consultation with the Prime Minister where he/she considers such consultation to be necessary, determine the number of ministers of the Cabinet of ministers and the Ministries and the assignment of subjects and functions to such ministries.

These two articles should not be taken separately, but have to be read with Article 3 of the Constitution which states: "In the Republic of Sri Lanka sovereignty is in the people and is inalienable. Sovereignty includes the powers of government, fundamental rights and the franchise.

Article 42 clearly states that the President shall be responsible to Parliament for the due exercise, performance and discharge of his/her duties.

Therefore, a decision taken by the President, according to Article 43(3), should reflect the will of the people. If the people give the power to another party other than the PA to run the administration with President Kumaratunga at the helm, she has no alternative but to appoint the Prime Minister from the party which enjoys the majority in Parliament. Acting contrary to this could be considered a willful violation of the constitution.

There was a similar situation in 1994 when Ms. Kumaratunga was elected to Parliament with her party just managing to get one seat more than the vital number of seats secured by the opposition.

President D. B. Wijetunga acted in keeping with the Constitution and invited Ms. Kumaratunga to form the government. He also allowed her to choose her own cabinet except appointing a minister in charge of defence which the President retained as the Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces.

If the PA wins the December 5 general elections, then it would be smooth sailing for the President. But as things stand today, it is unlikely that any party or alliance would get an absolute majority. Both the PA and the UNP would have to seek the assistance of minority parties to form a government. Given such an outcome, it is alleged that the PA is trying to return to power even if necessary, by disregarding the people's verdict. This will put the whole country in a mess , leading to anarchy.

Meanwhile, there are some interesting political developments in the run up to the December 5 elections.

At Tuesday's PA news conference, most journalists observe that PA candidates are more attracted towards Anura Bandaranaike than towards the Prime Minister.

Premier Wickremanayake was all alone most of the time, except for occasional stopovers by some on their way to talk to Mr. Bandaranaike.

Mr. Bandaranaike has suddenly become the centre of attraction, creating the suspicion among the press corp as to whether he would be the prime ministerial candidate.

However, according to close associates of Mr. Wickremanayake, there is no change in the hierarchy and Mr. Wickremanayake is the Prime Ministerial candidate. Mr. Wickremanayake himself declared that Mr. Bandaranaike is no threat to him or anybody. 

However that, the widespread belief among the SLFPers is that Mr. Bandaranaike is tipped to be the next Presidential candidate for the PA in the event the executive presidency is not abolished.

At the same time the SLFP is carrying out a campaign that politicians should retire at the age of 65, which could be taken as an indirect shot at Mr. Wickremanayake who is around that age. But Mr. Wickremanayake is determined not to give up. He is likely to be joined by many other seniors whose political future may be upset in one way or the other with Mr. Bandaranaike's return to the SLFP.

Besides all these, the increasing incidence of election violence has caused alarm in the country. By Friday noon, the figure had reached a staggering 800 mark with three deaths. The main reason attributed to the soaring rate of election violence is police inaction.

The Inspector General of Police has not or not been able to accede to the Elections Commissioner's requests which were made to ensure free and fair elections.

The IGP has however, appointed special police officers to overlook reports of election violence in three police divisions in the Gampaha district _ Negombo and Gampaha and Kelaniya.

People in these areas ask whether the Police are trying to distort certain political cases in favour of the PA.

But one cannot blame the police alone. Election Commissioner Dayananda Dissanayake has also to take some responsibility for what is happening. Some allege that he is not making full use of the powers vested in him under the 17th amendment.

For instance, once the Elections are announced, the Commissioner is empowered to ask the Inspector General of Police for additional numbers of police officers to be deployed at any place he considers necessary.

Others believe however, that Mr. Dissanayake has been placed in the hot seat, with the trappings of power, but no real mechanism to assert those powers. Whatever the circumstances, Mr. Dissanayake's position is not an enviable one and he is going to be surely tried over the coming weeks.