- EC awaits decision on delimitation
The wait for Provincial Council (PC) Elections continues, with no clear decision from the Government on when the process will move forward, the Election Commission (EC) has stated.
Speaking to The Sunday Morning, EC Chairman R.M.A.L. Rathnayake said that the commission had not received any instructions regarding the formation of a new delimitation committee for the elections.
Earlier in August, the Cabinet approved the appointment of a new delimitation committee to review recommendations from previous committees and provide guidance for the Provincial Council Elections.
However, despite prior assurances that elections would proceed once delimitation is complete, no updates have been provided on the progress.
Under the new law, a Delimitation Committee chaired by Dr. K. Thavalingam was appointed in 2017 to re-demarcate 2,022 electoral wards and 222 list-based allocations.
The committee’s work aimed to refine the Provincial Councils Elections Act of 1988, aligning it with the standards of Local Government Elections and introducing a mixed electoral system.
The committee’s report, however, was submitted past its deadline in 2018 and subsequently rejected by the Cabinet.
With the last Provincial Council Elections held in 2014 under the 13th Amendment, Sri Lanka has now gone over 11 years without fresh PC Elections.
– By Kenolee Perera