• Chinese Govt. continues to push SL Govt. to discuss with Chinese Exim Bank
• RW expected to establish link with Chinese leaders to resolve debt issues
• Paris Club statement on supporting SL debt restructuring expected this week
• Non-Paris Club creditors Saudi Arabia, Kuwait also support debt restructuring
• US’ Nuland to meet President, Tamil and Muslim politicians on Wednesday
• RW slams Gevindu; ‘We both came from National List, but now I’m President’
• Delay in issuing gazette on Local Government Polls date causes confusion
• Gazette on LG Polls date to be issued by district returning officers
• CBSL Governor says funding polls not bank’s job, Treasury notes challenges
• RW loses cool, asks UNPers to stop second guessing about polls and prepare
• Basil goes solo for religious observances in Kandy to kickstart SLPP campaign

As Sri Lanka gears up to celebrate its 75th Independence Day, chaos and confusion seem to have become the order of the day for President Ranil Wickremesinghe and his Government on several key fronts.

The first issue faced by the Wickremesinghe Government is the race against time to finalise the country’s debt restructuring programme in order to secure the proposed Extended Fund Facility (EFF) from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The next is the impending Local Government (LG) Elections scheduled to be held this March, which has now become an unfolding drama for the contestants as well as the masses.

The Sri Lankan Government’s hopes of finalising the debt restructuring programme this month with agreements reached with the country’s key creditors – Japan, India, and China – have been dashed following the recent communication received from China by the Finance Ministry regarding debt restructuring.

It is reliably learnt that the Chinese Export-Import (Exim) Bank’s agreement to support Sri Lanka’s debt restructuring programme, while agreeing to a two-year moratorium on Sri Lankan debt, will not suffice to move forward with the planned IMF programme.

“The letter sent by the Chinese is not what was expected. The IMF has communicated that the commitment by the Chinese is not adequate to move forward with Sri Lanka’s programme,” a highly-placed Government source said.

The source further explained that there were several key areas of focus for the IMF in Sri Lanka’s debt restructuring programme and key among them was the fact that the agreements reached with the country’s bilateral creditors were uniform.

It is also learnt that the Paris Club is expected to make a statement on Sri Lanka’s debt restructuring programme in the coming week. The Paris Club has proposed a 10-year debt moratorium and a 15-year debt restructuring programme for Sri Lanka, which will provide a breathing space for the country to get its affairs in order.

“The letter sent by the Chinese does not indicate support to restructure Sri Lanka’s debt,” the Government source further noted.

However, it was the statement by the source that “everything now hangs on China” that clearly pointed out the dilemma faced by the Wickremesinghe Government in getting the IMF programme as planned.

President Wickremesinghe, it is learnt, is to engage with the Chinese to reach a consensus on the debt restructuring programme. 

It is learnt that efforts made by the Government to engage directly with the Chinese Government had failed, with the latter continuously directing the Sri Lankan side to engage with the Exim Bank of China. It is this reason that has now compelled President Wickremesinghe to explore the option of establishing direct contact with the Chinese leaders to engage at the level of heads of state.

Finance Ministry officials meanwhile engaged with the officials of the IMF last week to discuss the way forward on Sri Lanka’s planned programme with the IMF.

So far, India and Japan have sent out positive signals on Sri Lanka’s debt restructuring programme.

India became the first of Sri Lanka’s key bilateral creditors to hand over its letter of support for the financing and debt restructuring of Sri Lanka to the IMF.

It is in such a backdrop that Japanese Vice Finance Minister for International Affairs Masato Kanda has assured that Japan is closely coordinating with international organisations, such as the Paris Club and the IMF, to ensure the participation of non-Paris Club members in Sri Lanka’s debt restructuring plan.

Kanda had told Reuters last week that Japan was working hard to help Sri Lanka by coordinating with the Paris Club of creditor nations and the IMF to ensure the participation of non-members, including China and India, in efforts to restructure the island nation’s debt.

The UK has meanwhile noted that as a member of the Paris Club, it stood ready to consider the necessary financing assurances to secure an IMF EFF to Sri Lanka.

“The UK is fully supportive of the proposed Coordination Platform between Sri Lanka’s Paris Club and non-Paris Club creditors, which we believe represents the most efficient way to restore debt sustainability in Sri Lanka,” Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office) Anne-Marie Trevelyan had informed the UK Parliament on Tuesday (24).

Meanwhile, countries outside the Paris Club as well as creditors of Sri Lanka like Saudi Arabia and Kuwait have also expressed support of Sri Lanka’s debt restructuring programme.

More time

The delay in finalising the debt restructuring deal and the IMF programme was evident by a statement made by the Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) to a foreign media outlet last week.

Sri Lanka is committed to meeting all its debt repayments and is hoping to complete debt restructuring negotiations in the next six months, Governor Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe had stated last week.

According to Reuters, Weerasinghe has said good progress has been made in negotiations with the Paris Club creditor nations and other creditors. He has further said that while talks with local banks to reduce rates are ongoing, restructuring of domestic debt remains uncertain.

Meanwhile, former CBSL Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal on Wednesday (25) took a swipe at incumbent Governor Weerasinghe by saying that Weerasinghe had printed more money than he had. “Current Central Bank Governor had printed 50% more money than I did,” Cabraal had told journalists. “One has to print money when the need arises and the present Governor has done it accordingly,” he had said.

Cabraal had further claimed that he had also made an effort to get a debt moratorium from China and India during his tenure as Governor. “One must try for a debt moratorium rather than asking for a write-off,” he had added.

Cabraal is among the officials of the previous Government who have been accused of being responsible for the wrong economic management and policies that had eventually propelled the current economic crisis.

Nuland’s visit

While the country is at economic and political crossroads, a senior official of the US Government is to visit Sri Lanka this week.

The President is to meet with US Under Secretary of State Victoria Nuland on Wednesday (1 February) before travelling to Kandy for several official engagements. The Under Secretary is to meet with politicians of Tamil and Muslim parties on Wednesday as well.

Nuland commenced an official visit in Nepal, India, Sri Lanka, and Qatar yesterday (28) and is to conclude them on Friday (3 February). 

Nuland’s visit to Sri Lanka at a crucial time for the country and its Government could also be viewed as yet another decisive official visit following the recent visit of India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar to Sri Lanka.

In 2014, Nuland was at the centre of controversy over the Ukraine crisis with a script of a leaked telephone conversation between the US official and the then US Ambassador to the Ukraine being posted online at the time.

Implementing 13A

However, President Wickremesinghe for his part seems to be making an effort to balance the local political landscape – at least before the public eye.

The All-Party Conference (APC) convened by President Wickremesinghe on Thursday (26) saw the President taking a firm stand on several key issues, especially those related to resolving the longstanding issues of the Tamil people.

President Wickremesinghe announced at the meeting on reconciliation that the Government was committed to implementing the 13th Amendment in full. Speaking at the gathering, the President stated that as the Executive it was within his purview to implement the laws in the country and, since the 13th Amendment had been adopted by the Parliament and enacted into the Constitution, then it must be implemented fully. 

However, he said that if the party leaders were not agreeable to this, then they must take a decision and move a motion in Parliament to get rid of the 13th Amendment. However, until a final decision is taken by the leaders on whether the amendment stays or not, it is to be implemented fully. 

Elaborating further on the point made by him, the President said that the proposed National Land Commission under the 13th Amendment would be expanded from the existing nine members (representing the nine provinces) to 21 members. This will allow for greater representation from the relevant authorities to ensure there is a single decision-making body. 

As for Police powers, the President proposed the establishment of 10 Police divisions – one for each province, while the Western Province will be provided with two divisions, one for the Western Province and one for the Metropolitan area (Colombo City). 

The proposals were met with opposition from MPs Ven. Rathana Thera and Sarath Weerasekera, who claimed that implementing the 13th Amendment would divide the country, while MPs Kumar Welgama and Dr. Rajitha Senaratne spoke in favour of its implementation.

Notable absentees from the meeting were Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa (along with the Samagi Jana Balawegaya – SJB), Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) dissidents Dullas Alahapperuma and Prof. G.L. Peiris, the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), the Tamil Progressive Alliance (TPA), and Gajan Ponnambalam.

However, when inquiries were made about their absences, it was learnt that Alahapperuma had been in fact celebrating his wife’s birthday and therefore unable to attend the meeting. Meanwhile, the SJB, which failed to attend the meeting, was reportedly able to send several of its MPs for the India Republic Day celebrations held an hour after the meeting at India House.

Meanwhile, both Senaratne and Welgama who attended the meeting had stated that they were attending the meeting in a personal capacity since they firmly believed in reconciliation.

RW takes on Gevindu

As soon as Wickremesinghe explained the Government’s commitment to implement the 13th Amendment in full, SLPP dissident MP Gevindu Cumaratunga had raised objections stating that the President did not have the mandate to implement the 13th Amendment.

The MP pointed out that former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa had received a mandate to implement a Constitution without the 13th Amendment and that Wickremesinghe did not have the mandate to implement the 13th Amendment since the incumbent President was only completing the remaining period of the Gotabaya presidency. “You do not have the mandate to implement the 13th Amendment,” Cumaratunga said.

“You don’t have a proper understanding of the Constitution,” Wickremesinghe responded, while explaining that individuals representing all parties in the House had voted to elect him as President.

The President maintained that he had the mandate to implement the Constitution as the Executive. “You and I, we both came from the list (National List). But today I have become the President,” Wickremesinghe said with a smile.

More talks

The President had also outlined that three rounds of talks would be held on addressing the issues of the Tamil people and reconciliation. Thursday’s talks comprised the first round. The second round of talks is to focus on integration of Hill Country Tamils, while the third round is to focus on issues faced by the Muslim community. Afterwards talks will also be held on the issues facing Sinhalese communities, i.e. farming communities in the north and east.

During Thursday’s discussion, the President noted that the draft Counter Terrorism Bill would be handed over to party leaders for their comments by next week, while the draft Truth and Reconciliation Commission Bill would be released by the third week of February.

Weerasekera requested that lands around Palali not be released due to what he believed was a resurgence of the LTTE. However, Wickremesinghe responded to Weerasekera saying that the release of land would be done after discussions with security forces. 

A concrete plan is to be provided by security forces on their requirements in the north on the lands that can be released and the extent of land that will be required for the military camps.

Polls conundrum

Be that as it may, while there has been some headway, at least in principle, on addressing the issues faced by the Tamil people in the north and east as well as the full implementation of the 13th Amendment, there has not been much progress on the matter of holding the impending Local Government Elections this March.

The Election Commission has already announced that the Local Government Elections will be held on 9 March. The announcement of the election date was made by the Election Commission last Saturday (21) after nominations concluded. The decision was reached at an online meeting held by the members of the Election Commission that was attended by four members. It is learnt that the commission members had held the meeting online since two of its members had restricted their travel due to threats they had received.

However, it is still unclear whether the polls can proceed without the issuing of a gazette officially announcing the date of the Local Government Elections.

While there was confusion over the delay in issuing the gazette, the Election Commission had maintained that the relevant gazette would be issued a week later as it has been done on previous occasions as well.

The ongoing confusion has also led to many parties and candidates raising concerns over the uncertainty of the election. Some political analysts claimed that despite the Election Commission Chairman informing the media of the date of the election, until a gazette is issued in this regard, it appears as though the future of the impending Local Government Elections remains uncertain.

However, political sources yesterday (28) claimed that the gazette notification announcing the date of the Local Government Elections would not be issued by the commission and that it was the task of the district returning officers once all attachments required for the official documentation had been prepared.

Matter before court

Nevertheless, the fate of the impending Local Government Elections is now vested with the Supreme Court, which is currently hearing a case calling for the postponement of the polls scheduled for March.

State Minister of Finance Ranjith Siyambalapitiya has claimed that the Treasury Secretary has submitted an affidavit to the Supreme Court detailing the cash flow management of the Government and that it was up to the Supreme Court to take a decision on conducting the Local Government Elections.

Siyambalapitiya has also said the Government was not printing money for daily usage and added that money was being printed under high financial management principles and that this move had helped to reduce food inflation to 60-70% from the 95% it had been at earlier.

Meanwhile, the Election Commission on Tuesday (24) met with 85 political parties contesting the Local Government Elections and one of the main topics of discussion was the expenditure for polls.

Political parties were asked to be mindful of their expenditure during the campaign period. It is learnt that an agreement had been reached between the Election Commission and the contesting parties on the maximum amount to be spent during campaigns.

Commissioner General of Elections Saman Sri Ratnayake has already stated that the newly-passed Regulation of Election Expenditure Bill will not be an obstacle to the holding of the upcoming Local Government Elections. He has also stated that the Election Commission will now be required to take the necessary measures to formulate new regulations on campaign financing after the bill was endorsed by the Speaker of Parliament.

Ratnayake last week stated that a candidate could spend only a sum of Rs. 15 to Rs. 20 per voter and the political parties along with the candidates have to submit an audited report to the Election Commission on the funds utilised in the campaign within 21 days of the conclusion of the respective polls.

In the event a candidate is seen to have spent above the stipulated sum of money, then they stand to lose their seat in the respective governing body.

The commission is to also take measures to minimise its election expenditure to around Rs. 8 billion from the previously-calculated amount of Rs. 10 billion.

The commission has also ruled out holding the Local Government Polls without adequate funding being made available.

Fund issues

Uncertainty continues to loom over the finances required to hold the polls while the Election Commission continues to maintain that holding elections is possible even if the funds are received from the Treasury in several tranches.

Commission Chairman Nimal Punchihewa has told that media that the Finance Ministry had so far granted several millions only to meet the basic expenditure and that he has sent a written request to the Treasury seeking sufficient funding.

Following the undertaking by the Election Commission to the Supreme Court that the Local Government Election will be held, the Finance Ministry Secretary informed the court of the challenges faced by the Treasury in allocating the funds required to hold the polls.

Meanwhile, the Election Commission Chairman has also written a letter to the Governor of the CBSL on Monday (23). The Chairman had requested CBSL Governor Dr. Weerasinghe to make the necessary allocations to the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) and Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) to ensure a smooth flow of fuel and power supply during the election period.

Punchihewa had stated that the request for allocations was being made by him from the CBSL Governor on behalf of the two State institutions since the officials from these two institutions had expressed concerns over the required financial allocations to ensure a smooth flow of fuel and power during election time. The Election Commission Chair has also requested the CBSL Governor for a response on the allocations to the CEB and CPC.

However, the gazette officially announcing 9 March as the date of the Local Government Elections is being delayed by the commission although it was expected to be gazetted early last week. It is believed that funding constraints and the possibility of new members being appointed to the Election Commission by the Constitutional Council were holding back the Election Commission from issuing the gazette.

However, Dr. Weerasinghe stated that whether elections should be held or not was not a decision for the CBSL. The Governor further told the media on Wednesday (25) that allocating the funds required to hold polls was up to the Treasury and that the Treasury Secretary had already submitted an affidavit on the matter to court.

“We don’t want to make statements about whether elections should be held or not. That does not concern us. The main reason is because the Central Bank is the place where the country’s economic policies are being implemented. Elections are outside our framework,” he has stated.

“The Election Commission had sent a letter to me as well. When there are long lines, we focus on priority areas,” the Governor has added.

Constitutional Council

The newly-constituted Constitutional Council met last Wednesday (25) where the appointments to the independent commissions were taken up for discussion.

The meeting of the Constitutional Council also made way for speculation about the functions of the Election Commission as Opposition political parties viewed the sudden meeting of the council as an effort by the Government to delay the impending Local Government Elections by appointing new members to the independent commissions, including the Election Commission.

Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa had even questioned Parliament officials as to why the Constitutional Council was meeting in such haste when the council itself had not been fully constituted. However, a senior official in Parliament had informed Premadasa that there were matters that needed to be addressed by the council and that there was no impediment for it to function with the current members.

Finally, Premadasa issued a media statement claiming that the Opposition would take to the streets in protest if any move was made by the Constitutional Council to appoint new members to the Election Commission to obstruct the impending Local Government Polls.

However, the Constitutional Council that met last week decided to call for applications from suitable persons for the independent commissions and applications are to be called via print media advertisements.

A newspaper advertisement is to be published calling for applications for appointments as members of the Election Commission, Public Service Commission, National Police Commission, Audit Service Commission, Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka, Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption, Finance Commission, Delimitation Commission, and National Procurement Commission.

A period of two weeks from the date of advertisement will be given to the applicants to submit their applications. Hence, it is unlikely that new members to the Election Commission will be appointed any time soon.

Sajith’s objections

It was later learnt that Premadasa, during the meeting of the Constitutional Council, had expressed concerns over making new appointments to the Election Commission, especially since it was an election period.

The Opposition Leader had pointed out that while there was no issue in preparing the criteria for new appointments for the independent commissions, the Election Commission should not be included in the list.

Once the meeting of the Constitutional Council concluded, the news reports that were published on the decisions reached at the council meeting stated that applications would be called to make new appointments to the independent commissions, including the Election Commission.

Premadasa had then inquired from the Speaker of Parliament how the Election Commission had been included in the list of independent commissions which were to receive new members when the matter had been clearly discussed at the council meeting earlier that day and his (Premadasa’s) objections and concerns had been recorded about the matter. 

Finally, Premadasa had insisted that the advertisement to be published in the media seeking applications of candidates for the independent commissions not include the Election Commission among the list of commissions to receive new appointments. “Appointments to the Election Commission could take place after the Local Government Elections,” the Opposition Leader had added.

Resignation dilemma

However, on Wednesday evening, a member of the Election Commission, P.S.M. Charles, tendered her resignation from the commission.

As soon as news of Charles’ resignation letter reached the public domain, speculation was rife over the resignations of the other commission members.  

Nevertheless, former Election Commissioner Mahinda Deshapriya has stated that the commission can still carry out its duties even after Charles’ resignation. He had explained that the Election Commission could function with a quorum of three members.

Meanwhile, the Election Commission said that it has not yet received a written resignation of a member of the commission. Responding to news reports that the members including the Chairman of the Election Commission had resigned and that the resignation of one of the members had been forwarded to the President’s Office, Election Commission Secretary H.M.T.D. Herath said that the commission had not received any resignation or a copy of a letter.

However, several weeks ago, reports of a rift that had spread within the commission where the members were divided over whether or not a Local Government Election could be held in the current circumstances were made public.

Charles was one of the members who had held a dissenting view, believing that the commission had secured neither the required funds nor logistical support to conduct the election, informed sources said. At the time, sources also claimed that three of the five members had opposed holding the election, however the Election Commission Chairman had issued a gazette calling for nominations.

This past week during a meeting between the members of the commission, the Chairman had been accused of not having kept the members properly abreast of the situation, with one suggesting that the Chairman had misled the commission on the status of the funds, according to the informed source. 

Moving courts

The main Opposition SJB meanwhile is looking at going to court against Finance Ministry Secretary Mahinda Siriwardana and Public Administration Ministry Secretary Neel Hapuhinna. 

The SJB is looking at filing the cases stating that the two State officials are trying to block the holding of the Local Government Elections, scheduled to be held this March.

The JVP has also threatened legal action against State officials who are accused of blocking the impending elections. JVP Leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake made this observation while accusing the President and the Government of fearing the elections.

RW’s advice to the UNP

Amidst the ongoing tug-of-war over the holding of Local Government Elections, President Wickremesinghe on Tuesday (24) called on senior members of the United National Party (UNP) to prepare for the impending Local Government Elections.

The UNP’s Management Committee met with the President at the Presidential Secretariat on Tuesday where Wickremesinghe was briefed about the party’s election plans.

However, seeing that some of the party seniors were still conflicted on whether the Local Government Elections would be held or not, the President had noted that all members of the UNP should be focused on preparing for the elections.

Party General Secretary Palitha Range Bandara, Deputy Leader Ruwan Wijewardene, Akila Viraj Kariyawasam, Sagala Ratnayaka, Ravi Karunanayake, Vajira Abeywardena, and Karunasena Kodituwakku had attended the meeting.

Basil goes solo

SLPP theoretician, former Minister Basil Rajapaksa visited the Sri Dalada Maligawa (Temple of the Tooth Relic) in Kandy on Tuesday (24) to officially commence the SLPP’s campaign work for the Local Government Elections.

Speaking to reporters after religious observances, Basil said that the SLPP would contest under the party’s symbol ‘flower bud’ for 252 Local Government bodies, while the party would contest as an alliance in other areas such as Jaffna (under the ‘veena’ symbol) and Batticaloa (under the ‘boat’ symbol). He further noted that the SLPP would be contesting under several other symbols in some other Local Government bodies as well.

However, when inquired about the alleged attempts by the Government to delay the elections, Basil said that the inquiry should be directed to the Government, adding, “I am not in the Government.”

Stating that there would be no delay in elections, Basil further noted that regardless of such rumours, the SLPP was geared to contest the Local Government Elections.

Polls drama

As nominations for the impending Local Government Elections concluded last weekend, several reports of the different dramas that had taken place in several key political parties started to surface.

The SLPP has decided not to contest in three popular areas at the upcoming Local Government Elections.

It is reported that the SLPP has not filed nominations for the Colombo Municipal Council, Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia Municipal Council, and Kolonnawa Urban Council, even though the party has submitted deposits for these three local councils.

It is learnt that the SLPP has decided to support the UNP in these key areas and therefore it has withdrawn from contesting as a party. However, some SLPPers have expressed their displeasure over the decision.

On the other hand, the UNP has also had its share of arguments over the nomination lists.

It is learnt that two UNP seniors had had an argument last weekend over the nomination lists of the Colombo Municipal Council (CMC). One of the seniors, who was a former office bearer of the party, had been blamed for trying to include too many names of SLPPers in the UNP’s list for the CMC. The respective UNP senior had pointed out that the UNPers would be displeased and disheartened if the SLPP was allocated more slots in the nomination lists.

Meanwhile, the SJB has also had its share of nomination drama, with Organiser for Colombo North C.Y.P. Ram alleging that names of some candidates contesting for the CMC have been tippexed. However, the SJB’s mayoral candidate for the SJB, Mujibur Rahman, has denied the claim.