The issue over electricity supply arose after drought conditions led to the depletion of water levels in hydropower reservoirs. In the past this had led to power cuts. While the current situation is not dire, the release of water for electricity generation has the potential of impacting on farming.
However, Minister Kanchana Wijesekera had noted that this would lead to a significant decline in hydropower generation and may result in power cuts being re-imposed. The majority of ministers were of the view that reintroducing power cuts was not feasible as it would impact many sectors.
Later however Minister Wijesekera who handles the portfolio of Power and Energy said that Cabinet approval was granted to release the required amount of water from the Samanalaweva reservoir for agricultural purposes. Alternative solutions would be found for electricity generation, he said.
Minister Wijesekera was keen to end reports, both in the mainstream media and on social media, that there would be a further increase in electricity rates. This was after the recent hike in water tariffs and following speculation about the potential shortage of hydropower for electricity generation.
The Government’s policy decision is to revise the electricity tariff biannually, in January and July every year and the Ceylon Electricity Board had planned for an uninterrupted supply of power islandwide throughout the year with no scheduled power cuts. This will not change, the Minister said.
No Confidence Motion
Another matter that engaged the attention of the Government was the No Confidence Motion presented to Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena by the Opposition Samagi Jana Balavegaya (SJB) against Health Minister Keheliya Rambukwella, citing several ongoing issues in the health sector.
These include the shortage of essential medicines, allegations that drugs of poor quality have been imported leading to adverse effects in patients and the mass-scale migration of doctors overseas. Minister Rambukwella has strongly and categorically denied the accusations.
At one stage, there was speculation that Minister Rambukwella may be shifted to a different portfolio. However, he was keen to face the No Confidence Motion and wanted to do so as he was confident of surviving the vote while at the same time informing the public of the state of the health sector.
It was in this context that President Ranil Wickremesinghe chaired a meeting of high-level health officials and the Minister. Among the measures proposed were changes to legislation governing the National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA) and the Sri Lanka Medical Ordinance.
Other proposals discussed and accepted in principle were the setting up of a laboratory that meets standards set by the World Health Organisation to test the quality of pharmaceuticals and the allocation of an additional Rs. 30 billion to purchase essential and urgent medical supplies.
UNP restructuring
While these matters were being dealt with President Wickremesinghe is also keen to pursue the restructuring of the UNP of which he has been the leader since late 1994, when then President Dingiri Banda Wijetunge relinquished his term of office as President and retired.
President Wickremesinghe’s tenure as UNP leader has not been free of controversy. With the party being in the opposition for most of this thirty-year period he has been subject to criticism both from within the party and from outside. However, he has been successful in countering this effectively.
The closest his leadership came to being challenged was in 2011. Karu Jayasuriya contested him for the leadership. At the time, President Wickremesinghe emerged a clear winner, polling 72 votes to Jayasuriya’s 24. It was the same election which propelled Sajith Premadasa to the deputy leadership.
Arguably, President Wickremesinghe’s darkest hour as UNP leader came in August 2020, when the UNP polled just over two per cent of the vote and was relegated in Parliament to just one National List seat. How that solitary seat led to him assuming the Presidency of the nation is now history.
Since taking office, President Wickremesinghe has been careful to distance himself from the day-to-day workings of the UNP. On occasion, he has stated that he wishes to remain ‘neutral’, as when Local Government elections were announced and he declared that he would not campaign for the UNP.
Nevertheless, the President is mindful that, at the age of 74 and nearing the twilight of his political career, he needs to make succession plans for the UNP. What is being proposed is a ‘Leadership Council’ comprising of the leading stalwarts of the UNP who have reportedly already been identified.
Second tier leadership
President Wickremesinghe must have taken a leaf from the book of his uncle, former President J.R. Jayewardene who groomed Ranasinghe Premadasa, Lalith Athulathmudali and Gamini Dissanayake as the ‘second tier’ leadership of the UNP. Unfortunately for the party, all of them were assassinated.
The expectation is that, by allowing a Leadership Council to function for some time while President Wickremesinghe is still leader of the party and available for advice and guidance, it will create the space for the next leader of the party to emerge naturally from within the members of this council.
These proposals will be put to the party at a meeting to be held on September 10 at the Nelum Pokuna theatre in Colombo. The President hopes that these measures will also rejuvenate the UNP at the grassroots level, a necessary step in the revival of the party especially with major polls due in 2024.
On the other side of the political divide, the SLPP was dealing with its own internal issues. Although returned to Parliament in August 2020 with a near two-thirds majority, the ruling party has now split into several factions while it still appears to retain a simple working majority of 113 votes.
The most conspicuous of these groups is the Nidahasa Jathika Sabhawa led by Dullas Alahapperuma and G.L. Peiris and the Uttara Lanka Sabhagaya led by Wimal Weerawansa, Udaya Gammanpila and Vasudeva Nanayakkara. Together they command the support of about 25 parliamentarians.
What is causing concern to the SLPP hierarchy is the emergence of a third group within the party who are reportedly functioning as an ‘independent’ faction. This group is yet to officially break away from the SLPP but at the same time the political grapevine is buzzing with speculation that they may do so.
It is against such a backdrop that the SLPP leadership has indicated to President Wickremesinghe that it was concerned about these purported developments and sought his assurances that nothing would be done to destabilize the SLPP. It is learnt these assurances were readily provided to the SLPP.
Major elections
Such speculation can be readily understood if taken in the context of the uncertainty that prevails over the next major elections which will most likely be the Presidential Elections, which are due by October 2024. It is almost certain that President Wickremesinghe will seek an elected term at this poll.
What is uncertain at this juncture is whether the SLPP would field its own candidate. There is a faction in the party which feels it should. Another group holds the opposite view- that its prospects for victory are limited and that therefore, it would be best to endorse President Wickremesinghe.
It is this ambiguity that has caused divisions within the ranks of the SLPP. This has led to suspicions among the SLPP leadership that a group within the party could be strategically aligning themselves with President Wickremesinghe as an ‘insurance policy’ for their own political futures.
This type of behind-the-scenes political drama is nothing new to either President Wickremesinghe or the leadership of the SLPP who have both dabbled in politics for almost fifty years. They understand each other quite well which is why the present Government remains after the events of July last year.
The coming months will bring more certainty to the political landscape as party lines and alliances emerge with clearer demarcations but Sri Lankan politics will remain unpredictable until the next major elections in 2024, when a more stable direction for the country will become evident.
