NPC polls; 13th A intact

maintain silence until an official announcement is made about the holding of the elections. TNA leader, Rajavarothayam Sampanthan was away from Colombo.

Mavai Senathirajah, a TNA parliamentarian, told the Sunday Times, "Though a Minister has said that the NPC polls will be held as scheduled, we are still not sure. It is the President who has to issue the Gazette notification to form the Northern Provincial Council. He should direct the Commissioner of Elections to conduct the polls. Until that process happens we are not sure if elections will be held. If that process takes place and elections are held we will be contesting the elections. However we have our doubts that the elections will be free and fair. The Independent Elections Commission has not been set up. If the elections are held, there should be international monitors."

UPFA leaders are still undecided how they will face the polls. The likelihood of Sri Lanka Freedom Party, the principal partner in the alliance, going it alone is one of the matters under consideration. The idea behind the exercise, UPFA sources say, is to allow its partners (especially its northern ally, the Eelam People's Democratic Front (EPDP), to field candidates on its own if it so wishes. That way, the SLFP sources believes, votes will be split and that will place the SLFP in a position to gain seats under its own symbol. National Organiser Minister Basil Rajapaksa is the key strategist and is yet to initiate a final move, the same sources added.

Enter Gotabaya Rajapaksa

The conduct of the NPC polls and the once planned changes to the 13th Amendment may be on hold but that will not be the end of the UPFA's woes. Slowly, but surely, a strong campaign is building up, both against an NPC poll and on a call to amend the Constitution to delete land and police powers to Provincial Councils. Adding his strength to these protests is the powerful Defence Secretary, Gotabaya Rajapaksa. One need hardly say that his support and cooperation for the conduct of a trouble free poll in the North remains very much in his hands.

Gotabaya Rajapaksa reached out to the Tamils this week by airing his views on the NPC polls and Constitutional changes urged by some UPFA partners. He told the Sunday edition of Sudar Oli newspaper, a partner of the Jaffna based Uthayan, "whether it is India or others who want it, what is good for the country has to be done. What India wishes we cannot implement in Sri Lanka." He has noted that there were more Tamils in the Ratnapura District than in the Kilinochchi District. "What happens if the Chief Minister for Sabaragamuwa Provincial Council asks for Police powers?" he has asked. He has also questioned the relevance between reconciliation and the 13th Amendment. Arguing that the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), if it wins the NPC polls, would ask for land and police powers, Gotabaya Rajapaksa had pointed out that Tiger guerrilla leader, Velupillai Prabhakaran had also opposed the 13th Amendment. Having expressed such strong views, there is little doubt Gotabaya Rajapaksa would exert all influence to convey his apprehensions to UPFA leaders. This is easily the first time he has expressed public reservations so strongly over a Government move. He probably sees the future dangers these elections portend from a national security angle.

His comments come when the Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) warned that it was not worried about even leaving the UPFA. The JHU this week released a document titled "An Act to amend the Constitution of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka." It says the document is a draft 19th Amendment to repeal the existing 13th Amendment. It contends that the amendment sought "to abdicate the legislative power vested in Parliament and the Executive power vested in the President by the division of governmental power and restricted Parliament and the President respectively exercising the legislative and executive power of the people and thereby offended the unitary character of the state."

Such draft legislation is usually the prerogative of the Government in power. However, JHU General Secretary Patali Champika Ranawaka told the Sunday Times ,"there are procedural barriers. We will use the options available to us." Asked what happens if they are forced to leave the UPFA, he said "We don't care about our position. We only care about this country." (Edited excerpts of a Q & A with Minister Ranawaka appear in a box story on this page).

National Freedom Front (NFF) leader and Minister Wimal Weerawansa told the Sunday Times that notwithstanding the official pronouncements, his party's protests would continue. Weerawansa, who left for China yesterday accompanying President Mahinda Rajapaksa, said, "in the coming week, we will launch a campaign to collect a million signatures. The mobile campaign will begin in Colombo and travel to other towns." He said the NFF will also write to President Rajapaksa seeking a meeting where it will place the NFF's concerns over the conduct of NPC polls and impress on him the need to change the 13th Amendment to exclude land and police powers. In addition, he said, the NFF also planned meetings in principal towns.

This week, the newly emerged Bodu Bala Sena (BBS) said it would urge the Government to abolish the 13th Amendment. Its General Secretary Ven. Galaboda Aththe Gnanasara Thera told a news conference on Tuesday, "International and local influence to hold Northern Provincial Council elections clearly indicates that the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) support groups have a hand to split the country into two. They want to form a separate state (Eelam), using the Provincial Council system. The IndoLanka Agreement is the main cause for the LTTE to be further aroused to achieve the dream of forming a separate state in the northern and eastern regions of the country.

"The BBS will take to the streets with the support of the general public if the Government fails to abolish the Provincial Council system. The BBS insists that the re-settlement of the displaced Sinhalese community in Northern and Eastern provinces should be completed before having elec- tions. The resettlement will bring political and ethnic stability in northern and eastern provinces. The Government has a duty to safeguard Buddhist and Sinhala traditions, heritage, customs, history and interests before initiating elections and other development projects in the country."

Power project with India

These developments come as the Ministers at the weekly cabinet meeting on Tuesday (advanced from Thursday in view of the Vesak holidays) discussed the proposed Sampur coal fired power plant for a second time. The first was when the ministers met for their weekly meeting on May 9 when a cabinet memorandum was presented by Power and Energy Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi. This time, Wanniarachchi's predecessor Patali Champika Ranawaka had circulated a four-page note among his ministerial colleagues asking for the deletions of some provisions in the draft power purchase agreement between the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) and India's National Thermal Power Company (NTPC).

One of the main issues Minister Ranawaka has raised in his note is the need to delete a provision in the more than 115 page draft agreement to be signed between CEB and the NTPC. The relevant paragraph reads:

"…..GOSL/CEB declare that GOSL and CEB shall during the subsistence of this MoA neither entertain any proposal for the allocation including development, implementation, operation and maintenance of the said Project to nor negotiate or discuss the same with any party other than the NTPC for any of the said purposes. To this end GOSL/CEB shall also refrain from doing or engaging with any work with any other person for development, implementation and operation and maintenance of the said Project including any invitation for negotiation or signing or entering into any understanding whatsoever with respect to the said project or formation of a joint venture company with any other person/company/entity/developer for setting up the said Project during the subsistence of this MoA."

Minister Ranawaka's contention is that the Government of Sri Lanka becomes committed not to allow any other entity from any other country from initiating power projects in the Trincomalee District. However, the NTPC has argued that the clause had been included to ensure they function as a viable economic venture in selling electricity to Sri Lanka and are not "subject to unfair competition." They point out that the clause already exists in the agreement that Sri Lanka had signed on the joint project with India in 2006.

President Rajapaksa told his ministers that the Government was determined to go ahead with the coal fired Sampur power project with India since it cannot depend entirely on fuel-fired power generation. Whilst costs were high, the CEB has been incurring heavy losses. President Rajapaksa said that as a matter of policy, he was hoping to have some major projects carried out by foreign collaborators on a BOT (or Build/ Operate/ Transfer) basis. One such project was the ColomboKandy expressway that would cost the Government more than US$ 1.5 billion (or more than Rs. 189.5 billion).

President Rajapaksa then turned to Minister Wanniarachchi and told her to make preparations for work to begin on the Sampur project once formalities are cleared. It was Minister John Seneviratne (who was once a Power and Energy Minister) who pointed out that Cabinet approval was not required "to extend the validity" of the Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) signed with India on December 29, 2006. Minister Wanniarachchi has turned to the Cabinet for approval for this matter. The MoA has been renewed periodically until end of June 2013 pending the completion of the Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) and Implementation Agreement (IA). It is a new Joint Venture Company (JVA) between Sri Lanka and India that will sign the Power Purchase, Implementation and the Board of Investment Agreements "with the respective parties in Sri Lanka." The Cabinet will review the matter further next month before granting formal approval to sign the Power Purchase Agreement (PPA).

This week's events come as clear proof that the Government has galvanised itself to go ahead with the NPC polls and resist all pressure to allow changes to the 13th Amendment. It is also clear proof that the need to stage a Commonwealth summit in Colombo sans a boycott by some key members has become a priority of foremost importance to the UPFA Government. Reaching the heights of that glory is not an easy task. There is opposition both within the Government and outside; a price the Government is ready to pay. The question still remains whether it will be too costly -- not just financially, but politically as well.