Dr. Vigneshwaran, former Secretary to the Chief Minister of the merged North–East Province, has stated that the JVP — now operating as the National People’s Power (NPP) will not be willing to devolve powers to the Northern and Eastern Provincial Councils, and that the appointment of “shadow ministers” to the North is unacceptable.
Speaking in response to a query regarding the appointment of NPP Members of Parliament as so-called shadow ministers to the Northern Provincial Council, which currently functions under the Governor, he expressed strong opposition to the move.
Dr. Vigneshwaran noted that the JVP, which played a key role in the separation of the merged Northern and Eastern Provinces, is now in power under the banner of the National People’s Power. Despite the promises made to the public during their election campaign, he said it is evident that they are not inclined to allow the Northern and Eastern Provincial Councils to function as fully empowered bodies.
He further revealed that after the NPP came to power, he had written to President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and Minister Vijitha Herath, who is in charge of the relevant subject, regarding issues related to the Provincial Council system. However, he stated that no response has been received to date.
According to Dr. Vigneshwaran, for a Provincial Council to function effectively, approximately 160 statutes must be enacted. To date, no province in Sri Lanka has achieved this. He pointed out that the Northern and Eastern Provinces had managed to pass fewer than 25 statutes, which he described as unfortunate, attributing the shortfall largely to the role played by Governors in those provinces.
He also mentioned that he had served on advisory committees on the Provincial Council system during the administrations of former Presidents Chandrika Kumaratunga and Ranil Wickremesinghe.
During a meeting in Colombo between former President Ranil Wickremesinghe and former Northern Province Chief Minister C.V. Vigneswaran, they had requested that powers previously taken back by the central government from the provinces be restored. Although the former President had asked for recommendations to appoint an expert committee, the process was not completed during his tenure.
Dr. Vigneshwaran further questioned whether the current NPP government is genuinely interested in holding Provincial Council elections, noting that their reluctance even to engage in discussions about provincial powers has raised serious doubts.
He alleged that the move to appoint NPP MPs as shadow ministers to the Northern Province is an attempt to administer the province informally, due to the government’s unwillingness to conduct Provincial Council elections. He emphasized that shadow ministers cannot be legally appointed, and that it is not permissible to implement one administrative arrangement for one province and a different one for another.
Concluding, Dr. Vigneshwaran asserted that any attempt by the ruling National People’s Power to retain control over provincial administrations without devolving powers would amount to a violation of the Constitution.
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