PC Polls should not be plagued by same mistakes as Local Govt. Polls - Vajira

Both the new electoral system and the delimitation of boundaries of electoral wards have serious issues, Minister of Internal & Home Affairs and Provincial Councils & Local Government Vajira Abeywardena told Parliament today (28).

By Sandun Jayawardana

Speaking during the debate on the Expenditure Head of his Ministry, Mr Abeywardena remarked that these two issues have led to a mess at Local Government bodies. “All 225 Members of this Parliament made a mistake with the Local Government elections. We now have to decide if we are to repeat the same mistakes at the Provincial Council elections,” he stated.

He further said that the Government, in 2015, had pledged to hold PC elections on a single day to ensure free and fair elections. This would also prevent the abuse of State power, which could occur if elections for PCs are held separately, he argued. “We need to fix the earlier mistakes and go for PC elections,” Mr Abeywardena said, adding that it is possible to dissolve all PCs and hold their elections on a single day.

However, United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) MP Dullas Alahapperuma countered that holding all PC elections on a single day was impractical as Chief Ministers also had the option of dissolving the PC and could do so independently.