National Government delays Cabinet swearing-in

 

The swearing in of the new cabinet of ministers is likely to take place on Thursday and Friday as the United National Party (UNP) and the United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) mulls holding the oath taking ceremonies under several phases.

A special discussion was held last evening between the General Secretaries of both parties on the situation which has currently arisen regarding the handing of ministerial portfolios.

The issues have currently been resolved to a certain extent while the final agreement on the matter would be announced within the day, a spokesman for the UNP said.

It is believed that the delay in appointing the new cabinet is due to a conflict between the two major parties, which had recently signed a MoU to work together in the Parliament, on how many ministerial berths each should get in the proposed “National Government.”

The conflict stems from the fact that the gap between the winner and runner up is narrow.

As per the 19th Amendment to the Constitution, the Cabinet of Ministers will be appointed by the President following consultations with the Prime Minister.

The number of Cabinet Ministers has also been restricted to 30 through the Constitutional Amendment. The total number of non-Cabinet and Deputy Ministers has also been restricted to 40.

However, the constitution dictates that when establishing a National Government, the number of Ministers should be decided on by the Parliament.