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Political crisis: ‘Short’ NCM against Government prepared

23 Apr 2022

  • Independent group moots NCM if PM fails to resign
  • NCM to be kept simple to get support of SLPPers
  • Motion to be signed tomorrow if PM fails to resign
The group of 39 independent parliamentarians is set to move a ‘short’ No-Confidence Motion (NCM) against the Prime Minister and Government if Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa does not resign from office during the weekend, The Sunday Morning reliably learns. A member of the independent group told The Sunday Morning that the draft NCM was ready, and that the text had been kept ‘short’ in order to make it a precise motion against the Government to push for its resignation to make way for the setting up of an all-party interim government. “We want MPs from the ruling party also to be able to support this NCM. The main Opposition Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) has prepared a lengthy NCM that will not receive the support of governing party members,” the member explained, adding that some MPs in the governing Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) had already expressed support to the formation of an all-party interim government to stabilise the country and resolve the ongoing crisis. According to the independent group MP, in the event Prime Minister Rajapaksa fails to resign from his position during the weekend, the proposed NCM will be signed tomorrow (25) and handed over to the Speaker of Parliament on Wednesday (27). As of Friday (22), a group of 12 governing party MPs (former Minister Dullas Alahapperuma, Minister Nalaka Godahewa, and 10 backbench MPs) have called for the setting up of an all-party interim government. It is learnt that the proposed draft NCM has been seen by the main Opposition SJB, Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), and the Tamil National Alliance (TNA).  Once the NCM is handed over to the Speaker, it will be entered into the Order Book and taken up at the next meeting of the parliamentary party leaders. By Our Political Editor Suma initiates NCM against President Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Parliamentarian M.A. Sumanthiran is initiating a move to present a No-Confidence Motion (NCM) in Parliament against President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, it is learnt. Sumanthiran told The Sunday Morning that he, together with several lawyers, were engaged in drafting an NCM against the President. “The idea to present an NCM against the President was reached after protestors at Galle Face presented an impeachment motion against the President and urged political parties to support the move. However, an impeachment process is a lengthy one and that is when we looked at converting it into an NCM against the President,” Sumanthiran explained.  A point raised by Nihal Jayawickrema in a recent article on Article 42 of the Constitution on the President being accountable to Parliament had also helped moot the idea of an NCM against the President. He noted that although there would not be any legal consequence to the passage of an NCM against the President in Parliament, it would build moral value where Parliament would state to the President that the House did not have confidence in him. Therefore, he added that in the event the NCM was passed in Parliament, the President would have to understand the message and resign from his post.    


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