No intention of reconvening Parliament: President

• Says he has no legal authority to  reconvene Parliament after early June 

By Lahiru Pothmulla 

During a special discussion held yesterday with senior advisor Lalith Weeratunga, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa said he had no intention whatsoever to reconvene Parliament. .

“Whatever the cause may be, I do not hope to reconvene Parliament and I have no legal authority to do so after early June. The law does not expect to do the impossible. However, the National Elections Commission (NEC) has total authority to decide on the date of the election,” he said.  

Commenting on curfew relaxation, he said it did not mean the country was out of the danger of COVID-19. 

“People should not violate the instructions given by health officials. The virus threat still remains. Although we have contained it, we need people’s help to keep it at bay. Some inquire as to why we can’t keep delaying curfew relaxation. Fifty percent of the country’s economy is based in the Western  Province. Economic specialists opine that if we continue in this manner, it will have a grave impact on our economy. Even I would like it if we kept the country on complete lockdown for another month, but imagine the impact it would make. Only people can dismiss concerns of people. If we behave properly, we don’t have any issue,” he said.