Daily Mirror (Sri Lanka)

Country needs new Constituti­on

Says UPFA campaign tries to ‘give saline’ to MR

- BY SHIHARAMAD­UWAGE

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesi­nghe in an interview with the yesterday stated that the country needed a new Constituti­on. He said that bringing amendment upon amendment to the current Constituti­on would be confusing and therefore serious thought should be given to the drafting of a new Constituti­on.

The basic issue is that the Constituti­on was based on a strong Executive Presidency. So, there has to be various and far-reaching amendments in some sections. There was no chance that you could expect the President to work on those conditions with Mahinda Rajapaksa. It was just a pipedream...

I think that will require a new Constituti­on,” he said. He added that if given the mandate by the people, he would turn the country around as he had done in the past. Speaking about the UPFA campaign, the Premier stated that it was a campaign “to give saline to the defeated President Mahinda Rajapaksa” and their intention was not to save the country but to save MR. “Now, all of a sudden, the UPFA is saying

He said that brining amendment upon amendment to the current Constituti­on would be confusing and therefore serious thought should be given to the drafting of a new Constituti­on.

they don’t want the mandate the President received, they want him to follow the man who was rejected. So, there was no chance that you could expect the President to work on those conditions with Mahinda Rajapaksa. It was just a pipedream. They have made the party bankrupt,” he added.

To give saline to the defeated President Mahinda Rajapaksa

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from Sri Lanka