20A consequences

The passage of the 20th Amendment to the Constitution cemented yet another controversial historical event in Sri Lanka’s political landscape. The overwhelming amount of power that it will now bestow on the Executive will largely only be counterbalanced by the will of the people, and opens the stage to see whether centralised political power will deliver on the long sought after economic goals of the country. 

The argument for the 20th Amendment was largely dependent on the sentiment that its predecessor created impractical and damaging impediments for the Executive to exercise its powers, and therefore created a conflict that was insurmountable. The abolishment of the Executive was a key election pledge of all Governments since the mid-1990s but the 20th Amendment signals a reversal of this stance. 

The checks and balances that were introduced by the 19th Amendment were largely derailed because it was implemented by arguably two deeply disappointing political leaders who were only focused on self-interest, usually at the cost of public interest. The serious fallout of this propelled President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his Government to power on an overwhelming public mandate to not only roll back the 19th Amendment but also introduce a new Constitution. 

Political analysts will likely argue for years to come on whether the mandate to fix the issues created by the 19th Amendment gave the Government the right to centralise power to the extent done by the 20th Amendment, but this has now become a moot point for most citizens. There will also be attention paid to the fact that the Government was supported by several minority politicians to get it comfortably past the two-thirds majority even though it campaigned on an overwhelmingly nationalist platform. The impact of the 20th Amendment on communal relations and minority rights will remain to be seen but few can disagree that it gives a startling level of discretion to one person. 

The Government now has all it desires. On top of the 20th Amendment, it also has the most powerful institutions under its control, including many entities such as parliamentary committees that are supposed to provide accountability. Politically, the odds are stacked in its favour but that does not mean smooth sailing for either it or the Government. Sri Lanka’s economic challenges, worsened by the impact of COVID-19, dwarfed the 20th Amendment this week. People are less concerned by who wields power and more focused on what support it can provide them, and on this front they are likely to be disappointed, at least in the short term. 

Struggling with livelihood losses and healthcare fears the public are awaiting decisive action from the Government on key issues. Unfortunately unbridled power does not automatically fix decades of bad policy making. Credible investors still require adherence to rule of law, transparency and regulatory reforms that have been in the pipeline for years. The private sector will cling to the hope that the Government now fast tracks economic recovery strategies with a clear policy framework outlined in the upcoming Budget. 

However, in the haste to “get things done,” there is the ever present danger that corners will be cut and corruption will rear its ugly head, with less space for an overburdened public to fight for protection of its interests. This is what the Government now has to actively show is not happening. Basically, it has to prove that absolute power does not corrupt absolutely.