INTRODUCTION
The executive presidential system was inspired from France & USA and was introduced to Sri Lanka by the late President JR. Jayewardene through the 2nd republican Constitution of 1978. The executive presidential system is a system of government where the President is both the political head of the government and also the ceremonial head of state. (Heslop, 2023) The Constitution has upheld the doctrine of Separation of Power through the horizontal decentralization of power among the three branches of the government such as legislature, executive and judiciary. Separation of Power promotes and enhances the independence of the organs of government in building a virile and stable political environment. (Anyim-Ben, 2017) The Constitution has also upheld the doctrine of Checks and Balances which ensure that each arm of government does not abuse its powers and create unnecessary political instability in the system. (Anyim-Ben, 2017) Under the system of the executive presidency, especially after the 20th amendment to the Constitution, the President has an upper hand over all three organs of the government, resulting in undue influence in the functions of other organs.
THE PRESIDENT AND THE EXECUTIVE
According to our constitution, there shall be a president of the republic of Sri Lanka, who is the head of the state, of the executive and of the government, and the Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces. He shall be elected by the people and hold office for a term of 5 years. A person can be elected as a president by the people only twice. The president shall appoint the prime minister and other ministers including cabinet ministers. The president shall appoint key public officers including the attorney-general and the head of army, navy, air and police forces.
Under the 17th amendment to the Constitution, the Constitutional Council was established which recommends and nominates persons for the appointment as members and chairman of the independent commissions. President in his own choice could not appoint or remove persons from their office, without the approval of the council. After the 20th amendment to the Constitution, the Constitutional Council is now replaced with the Parliamentary Council, where the President is not bound to the observation of the Parliamentary Council when making appointments and he can remove and appoint persons according to his wish. Since the independent commissions including the human rights commission are no longer independent, it greatly affects peacebuilding in Sri Lanka.
THE PRESIDENT AND THE LEGISLATURE
The president has the right to attend, address and send messages to the parliament once every three months with all the privileges, immunities and powers of a member of parliament except the power to vote, through which he could influence the legislature. He has the power to summon, prorogue and dissolve Parliament from time to time and dissolve the parliament after 2.5 years from the date of the general election. The President can pass any urgent bills in the national interest during the time of emergency. He gets the sole control over legislature during the time of emergency which is not democratic. The president may submit any bill to the people to be enacted as laws by referendum which was previously rejected by the parliament. Such a power of passing a rejected bill is the ultimate power the president possesses over the legislature. His powers during the period between dissolution and assumption of office by the newly elected parliament, especially the power to assume the functions of not only the prime minister but also the rest of the cabinet, go purely against democracy. In the central government, minorities are represented only in the legislature where they share their own concerns and voice for their rights. The office of the President is practically held by a person from the majority. Hence, the executive presidency may lead to the suppression of minority voices and hinder the peacebuilding efforts as well.
THE PRESIDENT AND THE JUDICIARY
The President shall appoint and remove the Chief Justice and other judges of the Supreme Court and the President and other judges of the Court of Appeal and the judges of High Courts. This power enables the President to appoint any person who is in favor of him. Replacement of the Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayke in 2013 can be cited as an example of the misuse of this power. The president is protected from judicial proceedings against him over anything done either in his official or private capacity. President can grant pardon for any offender convicted of any offence in any court, through a prescribed procedure in the Constitution. The decision of a well-learned judge can be arbitrarily reversed by the President. Such immunity and arbitrary power question the ‘Rule of Law’ in the country.
CONCLUSION
Though the Constitution of Sri Lanka attempts to uphold the concepts of Separation of Powers and Checks and Balances to maintain the power balance and to ensure the Rule of Law, it vests greater power in the hands of the President to interfere and hinder the functions of other organs of the state. His power over the Parliament provides the impression that the parliament is completely under the supervision of the President. He also owns the executive and judiciary by making all key appointments without any appreciable external controls from other organs. Executive presidency in Sri Lanka is a threat to democracy where the parliament composed of elected people’s representatives is controlled by a single elected person. More strengthening of the executive presidency will lead to the emergence of dictatorship in the country. Therefore, it is necessary to abolish the system of executive presidency and re-introduce the parliamentary system which existed under the first republican constitution of 1972. Further, the Separation of Power and Checks and Balances should be properly balanced while ensuring the independence of the judiciary. This will contribute immensely to the peacebuilding in Sri Lanka.
References
- Anyim-Ben. (2017). The Doctrine of Separation of Powers and Checks and. Nnamdi Azikiwe Journal of Philosophy, 09, 77.
- Heslop, D. (2023, 11 07). The Executive. Retrieved 10 02, 2024, from Britannica: https://www.britannica.com/topic/democracy/The-value-of-democracy
- The Constitution of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. (1978).