Professionals for change in electoral system

Lakshmi DE SILVA

The electoral system of the country under the preferential vote system should be changed. It had created unhealthy rivalry, more divisions and confusion not acceptable in the 21st century, Attorney-at-law Kalinga Indatissa said.

He was speaking at a press conference of the Sri Lanka Professional Forum at the Mahaweli centre yesterday. He said the 1981 Act of Parliament of J. R. Jayewardene government had contributed to more conflicts and confusion by dividing people with more divisions like caste, religion and ethnicity.

Under the preferential vote system a new candidate has to spend at least Rs 10 million for the election campaign to cover the entire district.

At the same time some candidates in the same electorate fight for manape like in Ratnapura District where four candidates vie from Pelmadulla constituency while there were none from other areas of the same district, he explained.

Indatissa said the biggest problem is the elected Members of Parliament were not known to the people and were not accountable to the people of a particular constituency.

“Therefore we had seen irresponsibility among MPs and Ministers who were in different governments in the recent past,” he noted.

He also stressed there were politicians who cry for good governance, transparency and constitutional changes only when they were in the Opposition but when they had power during the past they did not practise such issues and changed anything.

There should be another Provincial List similar to the National List for those who have served the country and not to fill vacancies when the husband dies and the wife fills in, he said.

A two thirds majority is needed to amend the Constitution and in a previous occasion when the Government proposed an amendment to the Constitution the opposition refused to support and burnt the draft constitution in parliament, Attorney-at-Law Kushan de Alwis said.

Since the Opposition does not support to amend the Constitution the people of this country should give their support to the Government to amend it by giving a two thirds majority.

It was not only the electoral system that should be changed but several areas need amendments, he said.

There should be a stable Government to achieve economic development. As professionals we propose the German model and to incorporate that as a starting point, he said

Attorney-at-Law Kanchana Rathwaththe said we have opened a platform to express public opinion and urge other professionals to join our Forum which was only three months old and voice their views.