යෝජිත නව ආණ්ඩුක්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථාව (Third Republic Constitution) Chapter XIII

 CHAPTER XIII

 

THE PRIME MINISTER (PM) AND THE CABINET OF MINISTERS

 

‍67.       President shall appoint as the Prime Minister, the Member of Parliament who has the confidence of the majority of Parliament including the members not present at the poll.

 

68.       Prime Minister, upon the assumption of office, shall cease to hold any other office or position in the government, and shall not hold any directorship or any managerial position in any business or organization.

 

69.       The newly elected Prime Minister shall assume office by taking and subscribing to the Oath set out in the Fourth Schedule, in front of President or Vice President in President’s absence.

 

70.       Prime Minister shall be the head of the Government of Sri Lanka, and the head of the Cabinet of Ministers.

 

71.       Prime Minister shall be elected for such office for not more than three terms.

 

72.       The Provisions of Article 58 shall apply, mutatis mutandis, to the removal of Prime Minister.

 

73.       Prime Minister shall hold the following powers, functions, duties, and responsibilities.

 

(1)    To represent President on President’s request in Parliament or State Assembly;

(2)    To preside over the Cabinet:

 

       Provided that he shall have veto power to reject a cabinet resolution which was unable to obtain not more than two thirds of Cabinet Ministers;

       Further provided that a cabinet resolution shall be deemed to have passed if Prime Minister concurs with not less than one third of Cabinet Ministers;

(3)    To advise President in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution on such matters as President shall be bound to work on Prime Minister’s advice;

(4)    To implement the electronic government service (eGOV);

(5)    To preside over the National Security Council (NSC), which shall consist of Prime Minister as its head, Defense Minister, Home Minister, deputy Defense Minister, Secretary General to President, Secretary General to Prime Minister, Secretary General to Defense Ministry, Chief of Defense Staff, the commanders of armed forces, IGP, DIG of the CTU, the head of the National Intelligence Service, and any related important person invited by Prime Minister;

(6)    Prime Minister at his office shall have the National Security Operating Center (NSOC) which shall be suitably staffed by all the armed forces and the police to monitor the security of Sri Lankan sky, sea, and territory for twenty four hours every day.

(7)    Prime Minister shall be operating the National Emergency Response Operating Center (NEROC) which shall be charged with the powers and duties to function, respond, do rescue operations, quarantine, and impose curfew, in emergency situations.

 

NEROC shall be headed by a Director General whose rank shall be regarded as par with IGP and Chief of Defense Staff during the times of Emergency, and shall be staffed with able personnel with sufficient facilities.

(8)    To be in charge of space, space exploration, and space related activities;

 

(9)    To be in charge of national heritage, Buddha Sasana, and protection and advancement thereof;

 

(10) To administer the National Language Office (NLO) as per the provisions of paragraph 30(3), and the Commission for the Advancement of Differently-abled People as per the provisions of paragraph 33(4)(b);

 

(11) To discharge any provisional responsibility or duty entrusted by Cabinet or President in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution and laws.

74.       The provisions of Article 62 of this Constitution shall apply, mutatis mutandis, to Prime Minister.

 

75.       (1) Prime Minister shall have the power to appoint such Secretaries, and in consultation with Cabinet, such other officers and staff as are in his opinion necessary to assist him in the exercise, performance and discharge of the powers, duties and functions of his office, and to determine their terms and conditions of service.

(2) Secretary General to Prime Minister shall be one of the most senior officers of the Sri Lanka Administrative Service (SLAS), and he shall be the head of SLAS.

      (3) Such Secretaries, officers and staff shall be deemed to be public officers except that the dismissal and disciplinary control of such Secretaries, officers and staff shall be vested in the Prime Minister, who may delegate to his Chief of Staff or any such Secretary his powers of dismissal and disciplinary control in respect of any such officers or staff.

(4) The provisions of Article 62 of this Constitution shall apply, mutatis mutandis, to the staff of Prime Minister and Cabinet Secretary.

 

76.   The number of Ministries of Cabinet shall be fixed and they shall be:

 

(1)    Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA);

(2)    Ministry of Finance and Planning(MOF);

 

(3)    Ministry of Defense (MOD);

 

(4)    Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA);

 

(5)    Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation, Fisheries, and Animal Husbandry (MOA);

 

(6)    Ministry of Transport and Roads (MOT);

 

(7)    Ministry of  Infrastructure, Housing, and Water Supply (MOI);

 

(8)    Ministry of Education, Information, Research and Development (MOE);

 

(9)    Ministry of Justice, Parliamentary and State Assembly Affairs (MOJ);

 

(10)Ministry of Power and Energy (MOP);

 

(11)Ministry of Commerce, Industries, and Public Enterprises (MOC);

 

(12)Ministry of Health, Nutrition, and Sports (MOH);

 

(13)Ministry of Local Government (MLG); and

 

(14) Ministry of Sustainable Development and Environment (MSE).

77.   (1) President shall appoint one of Members of Parliament as the Cabinet Minister in charge of any one Ministry of Cabinet listed as Article 76 above, on advice of Prime Minister.

 

       (2) President or Vice President or Prime Minister shall not hold any such Ministry of Cabinet.

 

(3) One person shall not hold more than one Ministry of Cabinet.

(4) Not more than one cabinet minister shall be from Close Family Members as defined in paragraph 136(2).

78.   (1) President shall appoint one of Members of Parliament as the Deputy Minister to a Minister of Cabinet, who shall assist the Minister in charge, and perform the duties and responsibilities entrusted on him by such Minister.

(2) President shall appoint one of Members of Parliament as the Deputy Minister to Prime Minister, who shall assist Prime Minister.

 

79.   No Member of Parliament shall be appointed to any Ministry of Cabinet in any capacity or designation, save as otherwise provided in Articles 77 and 78.

 

80.    The Cabinet of Ministers (or Cabinet) shall comprise of Prime Minister and Ministers of Cabinet (or Cabinet Ministers), and nobody shall prevent or defer any Cabinet Minister from attending the Cabinet.

 

81.   Prime Minister may invite one or several deputy ministers to Cabinet, and such deputy minister shall not have the right to vote in Cabinet Decisions.

 

82.   The Cabinet shall have a Cabinet Secretary with sufficient staff under the Prime Minister.

 

83.   The subject, duties, responsibilities, and subordinate government bodies and public corporations of each ministry shall be determined by resolution in the Parliament.

 

84.   The provisions of Article 62 of this Constitution shall apply, mutatis mutandis, to Cabinet Ministers and Deputy Ministers.

85.   President shall appoint, subject to the provisions of paragraph 185(1), to each Ministry a senior SLAS officer as the Secretary General to such Ministry on advice of Prime Minister, and Prime Minister shall consult with the Minister in charge of such ministry prior to advice President.

86.   (1) Parliament shall determine by a resolution in Parliament the manner, nature, number, and other related matters of the staff required for a ministry, the minister, and the deputy minister, and the Cabinet, and by the hand of the Cabinet Secretary shall appoint such members therefor.

(2) A member of staff either official or private, of a ministry or of a minister shall not come from Close Family Members as defined in paragraph 136(2).

(3) The provisions of Article 62 of this Constitution shall apply, mutatis mutandis, to staff of Ministry and staff of Minister.

 

87.   (1) The Minister in charge of a Cabinet Ministry may delegate some of his power to deputy minister in the same Ministry by a public notification in the Gazette.

 

       (2) Deputy Minister shall have the right to immediately obtain and access in original form any information relating to any matter carried under his Ministry.

       (3) Deputy Minister shall be responsible to the Minister in charge of the Ministry with regards to any subject and responsibility delegated to him in accordance with paragraph (1) of this Article.

88.   President on the advice of Prime Minister may appoint a deputy minister as the Acting Cabinet Minister if such Minister vacates the position or is temporarily unable to discharge his duties, or leaves the country; and for such temporary duration Deputy Minister to Prime Minister shall be appointed as the deputy minister of such ministry.

 

89.   Minister or Deputy Minister shall vacate his position upon:

 

(1)    operation of provisions of the Article 58, mutatis mutandis; and

(2)    removal by President on the advice of Prime Minister.

90.   Prime Minister, Cabinet Ministers, and Deputy Ministers shall be individually and collectively responsible to Parliament and State Assembly.

 

91.   Prime Minister, notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs 77(2) and 77(3), shall temporarily hold, for not more than one week, one or several ministries until a Cabinet Minister is appointed to such ministry or ministries.

 

92.   The dissolution of Parliament shall automatically operate to, from the moment of such proclamation, remove Prime Minister, Cabinet Ministers, and Deputy Ministers, and President, notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs 77(2) and 77(3), shall assume, as per the provisions of paragraph 59(5), all functions, powers, duties, and responsibilities of them until the next Prime Minister is sworn in.

 

 යෝජිත ආණ්ඩුක්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථාව PDF