Saturday, 5 October 2013 00:00
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By Dharisha Bastians
Ending weeks of speculation, the country’s first Northern Province Chief Minister, Justice C.V. Wigneswaran, will be sworn in before President Mahinda Rajapaksa on Monday (7) in a simple ceremony.
The oath-taking ceremony will take place at Temple Trees at 9 a.m. The President had said he was happy to perform the swearing-in for the Northern Chief Minister in Colombo, TNA sources told the Daily FT.
The decision was made following a breakfast meeting between President Rajapaksa and Tamil National Alliance Leader R. Sampanthan last morning. Both leaders had congratulated each other on their respective provincial election victories, the sources said.
The Provincial Ministers of the Northern Provincial Council and other council members will take their oaths before the Chief Minister in Jaffna on 11 October, which would have to be a more elaborate function, the sources said.
The TNA had earlier requested the President to administer the oath to Justice Wigneswaran in the Northern capital of Jaffna. The TNA was adamant its Chief Minister would not be sworn in before the Northern Province Governor and retired Major General G.A. Chandrasiri.
During the breakfast meeting with the President, the TNA Leader said he expected the Government’s fullest cooperation for the functioning of the newly-elected Northern Council, especially in terms of staffing and expertise for the Chief Minister.
The President had very kindly agreed to this request, TNA sources confirmed.
There has been some discord within the TNA about the President administering the oath to Chief Minister Wigneswaran following an acrimonious polls battle, but TNA sources said once the party decision was made the members fall in line.
“This decision is in consonance with the commitment of the Tamil National Alliance to ensure that the Tamil People are able to live in security, safeguarding their self respect and dignity, fulfilling their legitimate political, economic, social and cultural aspirations within the framework of a united and undivided country, as overwhelmingly demonstrated in their electoral verdict. The Tamil National Alliance expresses the wish that the Government of Sri Lanka would meaningfully reciprocate this positive step on the part of the Tamil National Alliance,” Sampanthan said.
