The Hindu : International : Sri Lankan House elects Deputy Speaker unanimously

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Wednesday, May 19, 2004

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International

Sri Lankan House elects Deputy Speaker unanimously

By V. S. Sambandan

COLOMBO, MAY 18. In a show of unavoidable consensus, Sri Lanka's 13th Parliament today elected candidates from the Government and Opposition to the posts of Deputy Speaker and Deputy Chairman of Committees, thereby averting a showdown in the 225-member House.

Completing the unfinished task of the new Parliament, which met on April 22, a member of the ruling United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA), Geethanjana Gunawardena, was elected the Deputy Speaker, while a member of the minority Ceylon Workers Congress, M. Sachchithanandan, was elected the Deputy Chairman of Committees. Both candidates were elected unopposed.

While the Deputy Speaker's name was proposed and seconded by the Prime Minister, Mahinda Rajapakse, and a Minister, Maithripala Sirisena, Mr. Sachchithanandan's name was proposed by the CWC and seconded by the Minister for Aviation, Mangala Samaraweera.

The election of the two Parliamentary positions, to have been held at the first sitting of the House, was deferred on April 22, which saw a nine-hour battle for the election of the Speaker. It may be recalled that W.J.M. Lokubandara from the Opposition United National Front (UNF) was elected Speaker by a single-vote majority after three rounds of secret ballot.

Member crosses over

When Parliament met this morning, a member of the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress, Hussain Bhaila, crossed over from the Opposition to the Government benches. No reasons were given for the crossover, but the move would have had an impact in case elections were held to the posts of the Deputy Speaker and the Deputy Chairman of Committees.

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