Report of the Constitutional Steering Committee Unconstitutional, Baseless & Unacceptable -Wijeyadasa

Former Minister of Justice stated that the Steering Committee of the Constitutional Assembly has been an unconstitutional and powerless entity since its inception.  Issuing a statement to the media, the former Minister of Justice Wijedasa Rajapaksa stated that the current constitution that exists from 1978, does not give the parliament any power to appoint a Constitutional Assembly or a steering committee.  The government should have obtained recommendations from a selection committee in accordance with standing orders in order to draft a new constitution.

Hence, the current Constitutional Assembly and its steering committee are unconstitutional thereby rendering the interim report submitted by the steering committee baseless and unacceptable. Further he stated that the Committee appointed to seek public opinion on Constitutional reforms has no legal standing and thereby cannot be allowed to function.  Wijeyadasa Rajapaksa further mentioned that the members of the current Constitutional Assembly are all driven by the ambitions of foreign parties, who aim to reap economic benefits through the alteration of the Sri Lankan constitution. Further, that certain politicians whose aim is to transform Sri Lanka into a federal state are also supporting the constitutional reforms. In view of the above facts, the former Minister of Justice questioned the integrity of the parliament through its decision to the empowerment of a committee that cannot be legally accepted to amend and reform the constitution of Sri Lanka.