Sri Lanka's 21st Constitutional amendment aims to curtail unlimited power to president

The Sri Lankan constitution drafting committee on Monday presented the 21st amendment of the country's Constitution to the cabinet as the people continue to reel under a crippling economic meltdown. The revision seeks to reverse the 19th Amendment, which gave an upper hand to the Sri Lankan President over the Parliament. As reported by Colombo Page, the copies of the amendment have been distributed among the Sri Lankan PM cabinet members and the Parliament Party leaders.

The amendment will be finally pushed after a comprehensive discussion on the same on Friday. “The 21A was presented to the cabinet, the amendment will be distributed among party leaders for their observations. Following this, the amendment will be sent back to the cabinet for final approval. Anyone can go to the Supreme Court against it,” Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe's office said in a statement. Providing a detailed account of the said amendment, Sri Lankan Minister of Justice, Prisons, and Constitutional Reforms, Wijeyadasa Rajapaksa, on Monday explained that the clauses include reduction of unfettered executive powers of the President and prevent citizens with dual citizenship to take public office.

The amendment of 20A was a major plank of the deal between Rajapaksa and Wickremesinghe after the former approached the latter to take the seat as the debt-ridden nation's Prime Minister.

8 more ministers join PM Wickremesinghe's cabinet

The developments came after crisis-hit Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa administered the swearing-in ceremony of the 8th new Cabinet after the unceremonious step down of his brother Mahinda Rajapaksa from the prime ministerial post, NewsWire reported. The ministers who joined the cabinet: Douglas Devananda - Minister of Fisheries; Bandula Gunawardena - Minister of Transport and Highways as well as Mass Media; Keheliya Rambukwella - Minister of Water Supply; Mahinda Amaraweera - Minister of Agriculture, and Forest Resources and Wildlife; Ramesh Pathirana - Minister of Industries; Vidura Wickramanayake - Minister of Buddhasasana, Religious, and Cultural Affairs; Ahamad Naseer - Minister of Environment; Roshan Ranasinghe - Minister of Irrigation, and Sports and Youth Affairs; The new ministers belong to the ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) and its allies, SLPP and the EPDP, PTI reported.

The new cabinet and the constitutional reforms come as Sri Lanka is facing a worst-in-a-decade economic collapse, stemming from compounded issues like ill-timed tax cuts, prolonged pandemic, and mismanagement of government funds. The island nation is struggling to meet the basic demands of its 22 million residents as it grapples to secure imports. Sri Lanka currently has an outstanding foreign debt of $51 billion. Following the ouster of Mahinda Rajapaksa, President Gotabaya is also facing growing demand for his step down.

(Image: AP)