The Opposition is set to table a proposal to ban the Executive Presidency, revealed the Chief Opposition Whip, SJB MP Lakshman Kiriella, speaking to Parliament.
As the Leader of the Opposition made it clear, such changes can be made with the agreement of both sides, the Chief Opposition Whip noted, adding that the 19th Amendment to the Constitution should be reenacted and that a bill will be tabled to abolish the Executive Presidency very soon.
MIAP
The value of the sell price of the US Dollar has surged up to Rs. 319.99, according to the CBSL’s Foreign Exchange.
The buy price is Rs. 309.38.
MIAP
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa is set to address the nation today (07) sources said.
He is currently being prepared for his address to the nation.
Earlier, the President attended the Parliament sitting amid heavy objection from the people, and left the chambers minutes later.
Sri Lanka’s beleaguered president will not be resigning, his government’s whip has told parliament.
The declaration defies calls from the public and political opponents for Gotabaya Rajapaksa to step down amid the country’s economic crisis.
Crowds have protested for weeks over lengthy power cuts and shortages of gas, food and other basic goods.
The public anger has prompted nearly all Cabinet ministers to quit, and scores of MPs to leave his government.
Opposition MPs have also rejected his invite to form a national unity government, saying voters want the president and entire government to resign.
But on Wednesday, Chief Government Whip Johnston Fernando told lawmakers: “As a responsible Government, we state President Gotabaya Rajapaksa will not resign from his post under any circumstances.”
On Tuesday night, Mr Rajapaksa lifted controversial state of emergency measures following further protests, the departure of several government lawmakers and the resignation of his finance minister.
The president had invoked the law – which allows the arrest of suspects without warrants – on 1 April after protests outside his house.
But he lifted them on Tuesday in an apparent concession to angry citizens. Earlier that day in parliament, 41 MPs had left the president’s ruling coalition to “represent themselves independently”. The implication of this is still unclear.
Sri Lanka is facing its worst economic crisis since gaining independence from the UK in 1948.
The heavily import-reliant South Asian nation no longer has enough dollar reserves to buy essential items like food, fuel to power vehicles or even generate electricity.
People have been suffering power cuts of up to 13 hours, massive inflation and a shortage of food and basic goods.
Protests across the country continued on Wednesday. Public frustration over the crisis has seen peaceful demonstrations held since January.
But the situation has escalated in the last fortnight, with many more people taking to the streets as power cuts stretched to 13 hours and petrol stations ran out of fuel.
“People can’t afford their daily rice, their dhal, their basic necessities. People can’t get on buses to come to work, to go to school,” one protester told the BBC this week.
While most protests are peaceful, there have also been violent flare-ups – with attacks on politicians’ homes and clashes between protesters and police.https://polling.bbc.co.uk/ws/av-embeds/cps/news/world-asia-61005827/p0bz69tz/en-GB/amp#amp=1Video caption,
WATCH: Police in Sri Lanka fire tear gas and water cannon at protesters in Kandy
On Tuesday, the UN Human Rights Office expressed its concerns about the emergency measures in a statement issued before they were lifted.
The UN noted the reports of police violence and said it was worried the restrictions aimed at “preventing or discouraging people from legitimately expressing their grievances through public protests”.
It added that: “The drift towards militarisation and the weakening of institutional checks and balances in Sri Lanka have affected the state’s ability to effectively tackle the economic crisis.”
BBC
The National People’s Power (NPP) will be ready for any negotiation on the condition of President Rajapaksa’s resignation, said NPP Leader MP Anura Kumara Dissanayake, joining the special debate in Parliament today (07).
None of the proposals made under the current President’s term of office would be able to alleviate the unrest awaken in the country, the NPP Leader emphasised, adding that the crisis is currently centred on two specific areas as political and economic.
MP Dissanayake went on saying that the citizens of Sri Lanka are not ready to accept any proposals brought by the President while he is in office, or the formation of any coalition or inter-governmental bodies or
Mr. Dissanayake further stated that the citizens are not ready to accept any proposals brought by any coalition, inter-government or conversations on and off the Constitution while the President is in office.
MIAP
Many surgeries at Nawaloka and Asiri private hospitals have reportedly had to be canceled.
This is due to the shortage of anesthetics available.
This has created a serious crisis and as a result, the lives of the patients are in grave danger and the patients are now questioning whether the government is taking revenge on the people in response to the protests against the government.
The entire process is going awry as there is no Minister in charge of the subject at present and the Government Medical Officers’ Association also staged a protest in front of the Ministry of Health yesterday demanding the government to immediately address the shortage of drugs.
It is reported that a discussion between President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa and the former Prime Minister, UNP Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe is currently taking place at the Parliament complex.
It is said that the President entered the chamber this morning and left it a few minutes later.
It is reported that President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, who had entered the chamber shortly after the commencement of parliamentary proceedings this morning (07), has left the chamber again a few minutes later.
Security has been beefed up around Parliament and the entrances since this morning.
SLPP MP Pradeep Undugoda says that solutions will be provided to the three major crises faced by the people in the next few days.
He stated that this was discussed at length at a meeting of the ruling party group chaired by Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa at Temple Trees yesterday (06).
“In the next few days, we will take steps to provide solutions to the three crises faced by the people, namely the fuel crisis, the electricity crisis, and the gas crisis. The new cabinet will be appointed in a few hours. By appointing that cabinet we will take action to solve the problems of the people through a new program. The new cabinet will be appointed from within the government as no one in the opposition has showed their interest so far.
Pradeep Undugoda stated this while expressing his views to the media after the group meeting held yesterday.
It is reported that a new cabinet is to be appointed today (07) morning.
It is said that this decision was taken following lengthy discussions held at Temple Trees last night under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa.
