Lankans want ministers to share executive power

Sri Lanka’s powerful presidency should be scrapped but executive power should not be concentrated in the prime minister and instead shared among cabinet ministers, according to a report by Citizens Initiative for Constitutional Change.The new government, formed after presidential and parliamentary polls that ousted the Mahinda Rajapakse regime last year, has called for public views and recommendations for the new constitution with abolishing the executive presidency a key, and long-standing proposal.“The executive presidency should be abolished,” said the report, a collection of public views gathered through a nationwide campaign that reached thousands of people through workshops, and e-mail and letter campaigns.“However, this shouldn’t mean that an executive prime minster should assume this position. “While the prime minister should be the head of government, executive power should be shared among the members of the cabinet,” said the report, published by the Centre for Policy Alternatives, a non-governmental organisation. “All decisions should be made by the cabinet collectively.”The Citizens Initiative for Constitutional Change said it is a coalition of civil society organisations and individuals dedicated to ensuring that Sri Lanka “finally receives a constitution it deserves” in 2016.