???In a constitutional democracy,the constitution is the supreme lawand governance cannot be on thebasis of personal prejudices or the whims and fancies of individuals???
JehanPerera, Executive Director at National Peace Council of Sri Lanka??
By Siva Sivapragasam??
While many celebrated Black Friday with bargain sales,the Black Friday of October 26 became a day of reckoning for Sri Lanka when the island nationin the Indian Ocean wasplungedinto a state of constitutional and political crisisbecoming a troubled nation with two persons claiming to be the Prime Minister of the same country. The currentturbulence followed when the country???s President Maithripala Sirisena decided to sack the sitting Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and appoint strongman from the oppositionMahinda Rajapakse who was President of Sri Lanka twice in his political career.??
The change in political leadership in the country has brought about several responses and chained reactions hurting the country???s economy, sliding the value of its currency, a drop-in tourist arrivals and turbulence in political affiliations with party switch overs and changing alignments. The changed political scenario is also against the background of a series of petitions filed in the supreme court, the country???s highest court, against the Parliament???s prorogation, firing the sitting Prime Minster and the appointment of a new Prime Minister, parliament dissolution and fixing of general elections etc. Both, the nation???s people and the political parties involved in the tussle are eagerly awaiting the court verdict for the next move.Meanwhile, Parliament has passed motions expressing no-confidence on the newly appointed government and Prime Minister since the opposition holds a majority as the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) has agreed to support the UNP led United Front to form the new government.
As ???Monsoon Journal??? goes to print, the current political scene in the country seems to be that President Sirisena might re-tract his earlier decisions and request the United Front to form the government again with UNP leadership but may suggest a new Prime Minister since he is against re-appointing Ranil Wickremesinghe as the country???s Prime Minister. However,the UNP keeps insisting that Ranil Wickremesinghe is the party???s choice for Premiership. He has already pledged to the political parties that he will not prorogue or dissolve Parliament againthat will give way for any general elections now. But of course, Mahinda Rajapakse???s faction and the UNP are confident and state that they are prepared to face the polls.??
A little bird whispers that ???Monsoon Journal??? correctly predicted in its November issue that Tamil National Alliance will turn-out to be the game changer in the current political turbulence in Sri Lanka.A senior journalist in Colombo with over 50 years of Media experience told the writer that if TNA is the party that will become the game changer, gives a majority to the United Front to form a Government and help political stability in the country coupledwith a solution to the current crisis,TNA will obviously turn out to be the automatic choice for leadership of the Tamil community in the future provided the TNA is able to obtain from the United National Front new government the rights of the Tamil community the TNA has been demanding.
