o Can be tapped into till end-July o No need to reconvene Parliament o Former Govt. VOA invalid after April By Skandha Gunasekara With the Vote on Account (VOA) that was passed during the latter part of 2019 expiring at the end of this month, it appears the President is constitutionally empowered to continue drawing from the Consolidated Fund due to the extreme circumstances of Covid-19 until the parliamentary election is held. A VOA presented by the former United National Party (UNP)-led Government, worth Rs. 1,474 billion for both capital and recurrent expenditure for the first four months of 2020, was passed by Parliament on 23 October last year. A total of Rs. 757 billion was set aside for the maintenance of public services in addition to Rs. 711 billion being allocated for expenditure already fixed by various acts and Rs. 1 billion for the presidential election. The Government is currently running on fumes as the VOA’s validity expires on 30 April 2020. As a result, it would fall on the President to draw from the Consolidated Fund in order for the Government to cover state expenditure. Co-Cabinet Spokesman and Minister of Higher Education, Technology, and Innovation Dr. Bandula Gunawardana told The Sunday Morning that the President could continue to utilise the Consolidated Fund. “The VOA will cease to apply from the end of this month, but the President can go on using the Consolidated Fund like this for three months from 30 April,” he said. When asked how much was actually in the Consolidated Fund, the Minister revealed that there wasn’t anything saved in the fund. “The Consolidated Fund doesn’t have a cent. Finances are credited to it through Treasury bills and other state income sources. There aren’t even 10 cents saved in the fund,” the Minister said. When queried as to whether there was a worry that the coronavirus pandemic would delay elections further, the Minister was adamant that the election would be held in the coming months. “No, elections will have to be held. If the Election Commission (EC) doesn’t hold elections, the President will do it in accordance with the Constitution,” he explained. Meanwhile, former Central Bank Deputy Governor and senior economist Dr. W.A. Wijewardena said that the matter of how long the President could go on debiting the Consolidated Fund was now a legal problem. “We have a legal issue here because during the time of an election, the President has the power to use the money from the Consolidated Fund. This is a time of election. There is no time mark on that – whether it’s two months or three months. So, until the election is over, he (President) is in a position to spend money. People will have to go before courts and get a clarification and ruling on that,” he said. Noting that under normal circumstances, the Minister of Finance would have to seek Parliament permission to use the Consolidated Fund, Dr. Wijewardena said that special provisions allowed the President to utilise it without the approval of Parliament. “In terms of the Constitution, to debit the Consolidated Fund, the Minister of Finance will have to issue a permit called the ‘warrant’ and that has to be approved by Parliament. That is the legal provision. But there is a special provision; when there is an election and if there is no Budget and there is no VOA, then the President can spend that money. This is an election time, so that is why he doesn’t want to cancel the election,” he said. Chapter 17 Section 150 of the Constitution states: “(1) Save as otherwise expressly provided in paragraphs (3) and (4) of this Article, no sum shall be withdrawn from the Consolidated Fund except under the authority of a warrant under the hand of the minister in charge of the subject of finance. (2) No such warrant shall be issued unless the sum has by resolution of Parliament or by any law been granted for specified public services for the financial year during which the withdrawal is to take place or is otherwise lawfully charged on the Consolidated Fund. (3) Where the President dissolves Parliament before the Appropriation Bill for the financial year has passed into law, he may, unless Parliament shall have already made provision, authorise the issue from the Consolidated Fund and the expenditure of such sums as he may consider necessary for the public services until the expiry of a period of three months from the date on which the new Parliament is summoned to meet. (4) Where the President dissolves Parliament and fixes a date or dates for a General Election the President may, unless Parliament has already made provision in that behalf, authorise the issue from the Consolidated Fund and the expenditure of such sums as he may, after consultation with the Commissioner of Elections, consider necessary for such elections.” Explaining further, Dr. Wijewardena said the fund itself was a myth and that money was credited from state revenue. “If you look at the government account, the Consolidated Fund is overdrawn – it’s a debit balance. There is no money in the fund. But whatever income earned by the Government and also all the fees and charges of government levies will be credited to the Consolidated Fund. Customs, Inland Revenue, Excise Department, Government Agent, Registrar of Persons, Immigration and Emigration – all these will be credited to the Consolidated Fund.” Dr. Wijewardena, however, pointed out that if the matter was taken up before the judiciary, then the perilous situation in the country would have to be considered when a ruling is made. “If anybody wants to contest that, then he/she will have to go before courts. But, of course, we have a critical problem in the country and it’s a chaotic situation. Courts will take that fact into consideration. Courts cannot just go by law – they will have to decide it on the basis of what is best for the people of the country. If the people of the country need these payments made by the Government, then courts will give the ruling in favour of the President,” he noted. When asked his overall views on the matter, Dr. Wijewardena opined that the wellbeing of the citizens must be prioritised during a pandemic. “No Government can stop its functions even under normal circumstances. This is an extraordinary situation. People are dying. When people are dying, you can’t just go behind the Constitution and say the Constitution doesn’t allow you to spend that money because the courts will have to make that ruling. I have a pragmatic solution for this. “If you look out the window, you see people are dying and they need government services, specifically health services. To provide health services, we have to fund it. To fund it, we need money, and that money should come from the Consolidated Fund. We can’t just go behind the Constitution and allow people to die,” he emphasised.