Jathika Hela Urumaya General Secretary Patali Champika Ranawaka stated that the 19 th Amendment will be defeated if it is presented to the parliament in its present form.

Taking part in the ‘Satana’ political talk show on Sirasa TV last evening, he reiterated that the 19th Amendment presented is not the one approved by the Cabinet. Furthermore, during the court proceedings, the Attorney General’s department submitted a version with several more changes, he added.

Ranawaka said that this was an attempt to make the president, who is elected by the people, into a puppet of the Prime Minister. People did not give a mandate to replace an Executive President with an Executive Prime Minister, Ranawaka further stressed.

He also pointed out that Jathika Hela Urumaya never opposed executive presidency. What it opposed was excessive powers vested in the presidency. What the JHU wants is to curb the excessive powers, Ranawaka explained.

He added that JHU wants to see a comprehensive constitutional reform with the reduction of powers of executive presidency, formation of independent commissions and electoral reforms included.