Despite the Supreme Court Slap to The Head of State, Sirisena’s Opponents May Not Be Able to Write The President Off So Easily -The Economist
NOT FOR the first time in recent weeks, Sri Lankans held a collective breath on the afternoon of December 13th, as citizens gathered outside the Supreme Court in Colombo, the capital. When seven judges eventually faced the packed crowd in Room 502, their decision was unanimous: President Maithripala Sirisena had breached the constitution last month, by decreeing parliament dissolved. Outside on the street, opponents of the president roared their approval of the ruling.As unusual as it was, the court’s slap to the country’s head of state came as no surprise. Mr Sirisena has been testing the limits of his powers ever since October 26th.
On that day he pitched his country into uncharted constitutional waters, sacking the sitting prime minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe, despite his command of a solid parliamentary majority, and appointing instead Mahinda Rajapaksa, a hugely controversial former president.
Mahinda Rajapaksa Ready to Move Back To Opposition and Let Ranil Form Govt But President Sirisena Refuses to “Take a Step Back” and Insists He “Would Not Govern Country With Ranil Wickremesinghe Under Any Circumstances”.
Indicating no change in his stance, President Maithripala Sirisena yesterday said he would only make a decision after observing the proceedings of the Supreme Court on the Interim Order issued by the Court of Appeal today, according to the United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) parliamentarians.
The Appeal filed against the Interim Order issued by the Court of Appeal, restraining MP Mahinda Rajapaksa from holding the office of Prime Minister and his Cabinet from functioning, has been fixed for support today by the Supreme Court.
On 3 December, the Court of Appeal issued an Interim Order restraining Rajapaksa and his Cabinet from functioning until the hearing of the Writ of Quo Warranto filed against them is concluded. However, on the following day, an appeal was filed with the Supreme Court against the Interim Order. The Appeal was filed by attorneys on behalf of Rajapaksa.
UNP Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe Asks President Sirisena to Respect the Supreme Court Verdict and Immediately Establish a Govt That Has the support of Parliament.
UNP leader and MP Ranil Wickremesinghe, in a Twitter post minutes after the landmark judgement, said he hoped Sirisena will “promptly respect the judgement of the courts.” “The Legislature, Judiciary and the Executive are equally important pillars of a democracy and the checks and balances that they provide are crucial to ensuring sovereignty of its citizens,” Wickremesinghe tweeted.
Thanking supporters after the Supreme Court decision at the Temple Trees, Wickremesinghe pledged to continue to defend the sovereignty of the citizens of Sri Lanka. “The Constitution has proven that the sovereignty of the people is greater and what we have been telling was the truth. I thank all those who supported to defend the people’s mandate and democracy,” he added.