MORE AMENDMENTS TO LOCAL GOVT. ACT: FAISZER
To rectify women’s representation process Shortcoming highlighted by JVP
I want to express my gratitude to JVP Parliamentarian Vijitha Herath for raising this issue
Local Government and Provincial Councils Minister Faiszer Musthapha yesterday said he would present an amendment to the Local Authorities Election Act no.1 of 2016 next week to rectify a snag found in the Act on the 25% representation of women in the nomination process .
Minister Musthapha speaking to the Daily Mirror from India said there was a grey area in the Act passed in Parliament in 2016 as it did not exactly say the number of women to be elected under the 70% First Past the Post and 30% PR system under which future local government polls would be held in accordance to the Local Government Electoral (Amendment) Act no. 22 of 2012.
‘I will submit a proposal to rectify this snag in the Act and I believe all political parties represented in Parliament will support it. I must express my gratitude to JVP Parliamentarian Vijitha Herath for raising this issue in a TV talk show as no one was aware of this shortcoming until he pointed it out,” Minister Musthapha added.
Meanwhile, Secretary of the Local Government and Provincial Councils Ministry Kamal Pathmasiri said the government printing department and his Ministry were working in close cooperation to issue the delimitation gazette as early as possible.
“It is not an easy task as the delimitation report comprises 30 books and four volumes that include the boundaries of the wards, the number of new wards and the number of local government members to be elected at the next election. We are in the process of proof reading of the English and Sinhala printing right now and we will send the corrected drafts soon after we finished with them back to the government printer,” Mr. Pathmasiri said.
I will submit a proposal to rectify this snag in the Act and I believe all political parties represented in Parliament will support it. I must express my gratitude to JVP Parliamentarian Vijitha Herath for raising this issue in a TV talk show