Joint opp. warns of Constitutional coup

30 December 2015 12:14 pm

The Joint Opposition today charged that there was a ‘Constitutional Coup’ backed by the western countries and that’s what had made the government to introduce a new Constitution.

Pivithuru Hela Urumaya (PHU) General Secretary and MP Udaya Gammanpila said this ‘Constitutional Coup’ would weaken the power of the Central Government by devolving power to local councils on the periphery.

“By decentralizing power, countries eyeing Sri Lanka for their political agendas could get hold of the country by influencing through peripheral and independent institutions. When the commissions are more independent, they will most likely be controlled by NGOs and so called civil organizations. This is a golden opportunity for certain countries to initiate their plans on Sri Lanka,” he said.

Commenting on a book titled ‘Monsoon’ authored by Robert D. Kaplan of the US, Mr. Gammanpila said the book had also emphasized the strategically significant location of Sri Lanka and how the global power struggle would evolve in the Indian Ocean region in the coming years.

He said they would seek legal action against a Constitution which would put the country in danger by weakening the power of the State.

“We can’t rely on parliament to make amendments to a Constitution because of the government's two-thirds majority. The government retains such majority through incentives. Therefore, we will seek the help of the judiciary when needed and request the people to reject a Constitution detrimental to the country at the referendum,” he said. (Lahiru Pothmulla)


 

Video by Sanjeewa