The swearing in of the Cabinet of ministers by President Maithripala Sirisena last Thursday signalled a new phase in the country’s government with the United National Front (UNF) now set to govern until the next national elections which are due in early 2020.
This also marked the exit of the United Peoples’ Freedom Alliance (UPFA) from governance for the first time since January 2015 when the National Unity government was formed in the aftermath of the presidential election.
The composition of the Cabinet was itself a contentious issue, resulting in the ministers taking oaths being delayed by a few days. At stake were a few disputed portfolios, the number of Cabinet ministers and the President Sirisena’s own firmly held views on the formation of the new Cabinet.
There was much debate in the public domain- and indeed within the United National Party (UNP)- as to whether former Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake should be re-appointed to the Cabinet. That was because Karunanayake was implicated in the Central Bank bond scam.
The Presidential Commission of Inquiry into the issue has made public its findings and they do not reflect well on Karunanayake. Following the revelation that the rent for his apartment was paid for by those with links to the scam, Karunanayake was forced to step down as a minister in August 2017.
However, Karunanayake was pressing his claims to be re-appointed as Finance Minister. Some within the UNP were of the opinion that if his request was acceded to, it would tarnish the party’s image and negate the momentum generated by recent events which once again brought together pro-democracy forces who rallied around Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.
Transparency and good governance
Among them were party stalwarts who wanted Karunanayake kept out of the Cabinet altogether, arguing that this would send a powerful message to the public that the UNP was mindful of its obligations to transparency and good governance. However, this had to be weighed against Karunanayake’s services to the party during the recent constitutional crisis.
Eventually, a compromise of sorts was reached. Karunanayake was sworn in as Minister of Power, Energy and Enterprise Development. Predictably, the moves have led to some criticism, but Prime Minister Wickremesinghe has had to deal with competing and conflicting demands in making this decision.
Another former minister who generated much interest was Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka. Fonseka was a minister in the previous coalition government Cabinet and would have naturally expected to be included in the new government. However, President Sirisena has refused his appointment to the Cabinet.
Fonseka, as he is wont to do, had been quite critical of President Sirisena during the constitutional crisis. Whether this was the sole reason for the President’s decision is now a moot point. The UNF failed in its attempts to convince the President to include Fonseka and he was not among the ministers sworn in last Thursday.
It was not only to Fonseka that President Sirisena objected to. Following the constitutional crisis, three stalwarts from the UPFA- Vijith Wijeyamuni Soysa, Lakshman Seneviratne and Indika Bandaranayake- crossed over to the government although they maintain that they have not joined the UNP. The UNF government expected them to be granted ministerial appointments.
That was also not to be. President Sirisena was firm in his decision not to sanction that. Earlier this week, addressing members of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) he re-iterated his position, stating that he would not allow any parliamentarians crossing over from the party to the government to hold office in the UNF government.
No longer a ‘national’ government
Another issue that was in dispute was the number of ministers that could be allowed. This had to be curtailed because the government was no longer a ‘national’ government of two or more political parties, with the withdrawal of the UPFA.
This was because of changes brought about by the 19th Amendment. Article 46(1) of the Constitution, as amended by the 19th Amendment, states that “The total number of Ministers of the Cabinet of Ministers shall not exceed thirty and Ministers who are not members of the Cabinet of Ministers and Deputy Ministers shall not, in the aggregate exceed forty”.
In the lead up to the formation of the new Cabinet following the constitutional crisis, there was some discussion as to whether the UNF should include the lone member who contested from the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC), Seyed Ali Zahir Moulana who represents the Batticaloa district to form a nominal ‘national government’. This would have allowed the government to expand the Cabinet.
That would have been in accordance with Article 46(4) of the Constitution, as amended by the 19th Amendment, which states that, “Where the recognized political party or the independent group which obtains highest number of seats in Parliament forms a National Government, the number of Ministers in the Cabinet of Ministers, the number of Ministers who are not Cabinet of Ministers and the number of Deputy Ministers shall be determined by Parliament”.
For these purposes, Article 46(5) defines a ‘national government’ as a “government formed by the recognised political party or the independent group which obtains the highest number of seats in Parliament together with the other recognized political parties or the independent groups”.
Including the SLMC by co-opting Moulana would technically come under this provision without any ambiguity. However, the UNP hierarchy realised that the public was well aware that other members of the SLMC contested under the UNF banner at the 2015 elections. As such, any moves to engage in constitutional sleight of hand for the purpose of increasing the Cabinet would be met with derision by the electorate. Therefore, that strategy was not adopted.
Still, the number of Cabinet ministers remains an issue under scrutiny. Although Article 46(1) of the Constitution specifies the number of Cabinet ministers to be thirty, it does not specify whether this is inclusive of, or in addition to, the President and the Prime Minister who are also members of the Cabinet by virtue of the respective offices they hold.
If the provision is interpreted to mean that the Cabinet could consist of thirty ministers in addition to the President and the Prime Minister, it would allow the UNF to accommodate two more ministers and this is under active consideration at present. The opinion of the Attorney General is to be sought in this regard.
The developments noted above indicate that, despite the resolution of the constitutional crisis in a relatively amicable manner, still there are significant differences of opinion between President Sirisena and his UNF government. This suggests that there is potential for dissension within the Executive and the Legislature in governing the country until the next elections.
Next national elections
President Sirisena also indicated, while addressing SLFP stalwarts recently that the party will be contesting in alliance with the Mahinda Rajapaksa led Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) at the next national elections. It is clear that, at least as far as President Sirisena is concerned, having forsaken his alliance with the UNP, he has thrown in his lot firmly with the SLPP.
Thus, the battle lines for the next national election have become clearer. Rather than being a three-way battle between the UNP, SLFP and the SLPP, it is now likely to be a two-way contest between the UNF and the SLFP-SLPP alliance with of course the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) and the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) tapping in to their share of the vote. It would no doubt be a fascinating tussle, especially in light of the recent political turmoil the country witnessed.
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