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Presidential election will be held between 18 Sept. and 18 Oct. 2024
– Commissioner General of Elections
The presidential election is the only election that the Constitution has set a time frame for and therefore it cannot be postponed, Commissioner General of Elections, Saman Sri Ratnayake has said.
“The Election Commission has no direct authority over holding other elections. For example, the tenure of the local council is four years. The line minister can hold the elections a year before, or he can extend the tenure of councils by a year. The tenure of a Parliament is five years but the President can dissolve Parliament after two and a half years into its tenure. This is not the case with a presidential election.”
The Constitution says that the tenure of the presidency is five years and there are no provisions to extend the tenure, according to Ratnayake. “On 18 November 2019, Gotabaya Rajapaksa was sworn in as President. The Constitution stipulates that the next election should be held between 18 September and 18 October.”
The Commissioner General of Elections said that even if the President dissolved Parliament in the first week of September, they had the capability of holding both the general and presidential election on dates close to each other.
“The Constitution says that if the President dissolves the Parliament, he or she is bound to provide the necessary funding and other facilities. This year, we asked for 20 billion rupees, to hold the presidential and local or provincial council elections. We only got 10 billion but if the government decides to hold local or provincial council elections, the Treasury has to provide us with necessary funds,” he said.
Ratnayake said the estimates for 2024 elections were based on prices that prevailed in late 2023. He added that there are about 800,000 first time voters for an election held in 2024.
Commenting on campaign financing, he said that it was not a new concept for Sri Lanka and campaign expenditure by candidates had been limited by law until 1977.
“George E. de Silva lost his seat in Parliament, in 1948, following an election petition, filed by his opponent T.B. Illangaratne, found him guilty and deprived him of his civil rights. Illangaratne said Silva got his manifesto translated for a fee of 40 rupees but had not put that on his list of expenditure. K. M. P. Rajaratne was fined Rs. 100 in 1955 by the district court in Badulla for not submitting his election expenses. He also lost his seat. The system operated during the first past the post system,” he said.
This changed with the proportional representation system where the political party submitted the nomination of candidates, he said. Before this each candidate was responsible for handing over his or her own nominations, Ratnayake said.
A politician needed funds to run a campaign, he said. However, when there was no cap on expenditure money became the determining factor in winning elections, he said. During the 2018 local council election, a candidate had spent 40 million rupees for a ward with 1,800 votes in Maduraketiya, Moneragala, Ratnayake said. The candidate was returned but was unseated by the Monaragala High Court subsequently.
The U.S. Embassy in Colombo welcomed the U.S. Sports Envoys to Sri Lanka, former National Basketball Association (NBA) and Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) players Stephen Howard and Astou Ndiaye, from June 8 through 14.
The Public Diplomacy section of the U.S. Embassy said that it would launch a weeklong basketball program intended to harness the unifying power of sports, made possible through collaboration with Foundation of Goodness and IImpact Hoop Lab.
While in Sri Lanka, Howard and Ndiaye, both retired professional basketball players, will conduct a weeklong program, Hoops for Hope: Bridging Borders through Basketball. The Sports Envoys will lead basketball clinics and exhibition matches and engage in leadership sessions in Colombo and Southern Province for youth aged 14-18 from Northern, Uva, Eastern and Western Provinces, offering skills and leadership training both on and off the court. The U.S. Envoys will also share their expertise with the Sri Lanka Basketball Federation, national coaches, and players, furthering the development of basketball in the country. Beyond the clinics, they will collaborate with Sri Lankan schoolchildren to take part in a community service project in the Colombo area.
“We are so proud to welcome Stephen and Astou as our Sports Envoys to Sri Lanka, to build on the strong people-to-people connections between the United States and Sri Lanka,” said U.S. Ambassador Julie Chung. “The lessons that will be shared by our Sports Envoys – communication, teamwork, resilience, inclusion, and conflict resolution – are essential for leadership development, community building, equality, and peace. The U.S. Sports Envoy program is a testament to our belief that sports can be a powerful tool in promoting peace and unity.”
SJB Colombo District MP Mujibur Rahuman in parliament demanded to know from the government the reasons for CEB suspending the leave of all its employees until further notice from Thursday.
MP Rahuman said that the CEB has got an acting General Manager anew and the latter yesterday morning issued a circular suspending leave of all CEB employees with immediate effect until further notice.
“We demand that Minister Kanchana Wijesekera should explain this to the House. This circular was issued while this debate on the new Electricity Amendment Bill was pending. There are many who oppose this Bill. The Minister must tell parliament the reason for the urge to cancel the leave of CEB employees,” the MP said.However, Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena prevented Minister Wijesekera responding to the query and said that the matter raised by MP Rahuman was not relevant.
The Chartered Institute of Personnel Management (CIPM) successfully concluded the 8th Annual CIPM Symposium, which took place on 31st May 2024. Themed “Nurturing the Human Element—Redefining HRM in a Rapidly Changing World,” the symposium underscored the pivotal role of human resource management (HRM) in today’s dynamic global landscape. Since its inception in 1959, CIPM has been dedicated to advancing the HR profession through education, professional development, and advocacy, solidifying its position as Sri Lanka’s leading professional body for HRM.
Ken Vijayakumar, the President of the CIPM, graced the occasion as the chief guest. The symposium commenced with the welcome address by the Chairperson, Prof. Arosha Adikaram, followed by the Web Launch of the Symposium Proceedings and Abstract Book by the CIPM President. The event featured distinguished addresses, including a speech by Chief Guest Ken Vijayakumar, President of CIPM, and an address by Guest of Honor Shakthi Ranatunga, Chief Operating Officer of MAS Holdings Pvt. Ltd., Sri Lanka.
The symposium also featured an inspiring keynote address by Prof. Mario Fernando, Professor of Management and Director of the Centre for Cross Cultural Management (CCCM) at the University of Wollongong, Australia.
Vote of Thanks of the inauguration session was delivered by Dr. Dillanjani Weeratunga, Symposium Co-chair.
The symposium served as a comprehensive platform for researchers to present their findings across a wide range of critical topics in HRM. These included Cultural Diversity and Inclusion, Talent Development and Retention, Ethical Leadership and Corporate Social Responsibility, Adapting to Technological Advancements, Mental Health and Well-being at Work, Global Workforce Challenges, Employee Empowerment, and Reskilling and Upskilling.
The plenary session was led by Prof. Wasantha Rajapakse. Certificates were awarded to the best paper presenters during the valedictory session, followed by a vote of thanks delivered by Kamani Perera, Manager of Research and Development.
The annual symposium of CIPM was a truly inclusive event, attracting a diverse audience that spanned undergraduates, graduates, working professionals, research scholars and lecturers. This widespread interest highlights the symposium’s significance in the field of HRM, offering a unique opportunity for everyone to network and learn from scholarly brains.The CIPM International Research Symposium was sponsored by Hambantota International Port, Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology (SLIIT), E B Creasy & Co. PLC, and Print Xcel Company.
US sports envoys to Lanka to champion youth development
Rahuman questions sudden cancellation of leave of CEB employees
