2 October 2020 08:24 am
The 20th Amendment to the Constitution will provide for the increase of the membership of the National Election Commission to five and the quorum to three, a Minister said yesterday.
Justice Minister Ali Sabry told the Daily Mirror the provision to this effect would be incorporated into the originally drafted bill during the committee stage of the debate in Parliament. The bill has already been presented to Parliament.
The government has announced that a set of fresh amendments would be incorporated into the bill when it is taken up for debate in the House before enactment.
Elections Commission Chairman Mahinda Deshapriya also said his office proposed such an amendment regarding the Election Commission. Currently, there are three members in the commission.
“We proposed that the quorum should be two out of three or three out of five. During elections, we are required to make quick decisions. Then, the quorum is important since it is impractical on some occasions for all members to attend meetings,” he said. (Kelum Bandara)