Provincial Council Installing And Broadcasting

COUNCIL SECRETARIANT

SABARAGAMUWA PROVINCIAL COUNCIL

 

Provincial Council Installing And Broadcasting

Legislative Powers of the Provincial Councils

By the 13th amendment to the Constitution, certain legislative powers devolved to the Provincial Councils. The 9th Schedule to the 13th amendment sets out 3 lists of subjects and functions, the reserved list, Provincial Council List and Concurrent List.
The Reserved List contains powers that are exclusively reserved to the Central Government. Provincial Council can pass statutes on matters specified in Provincial Council List and when a statute is so passed, the law passed by the parliament on that subject becomes inoperative in the province if the statute states in its long title that the statute is inconsistent with such law.
According to the Article 154 G (7), a Provincial Council has no power to make legislations regarding the matters listed in the Reserved List of the Ninth Schedule.
Article 154 P states that there shall be a High Court for each province. The High Court of the Provinces (Special Provisions) Act No. 10 of 1996 have made provisions for appellate and revisionary jurisdictions.
Article 154 P 4(b) states that “order in the nature of writs of Certiorari, Prohibition, Procedendo, Mandamus and Qro-warranto against any person exercising within the province any power under I. Any law or II. Any Statutes made by the Provincial Council established for that Province, in respect of any matter set out in the Provincial Council list.

Sabaragamuwa Provincial Council

Establishment and expansion of Provincial Councils

Legal frame work for the establishment of Provincial Councils was initiated by the 13th amendment to the Constitution. Accordingly, articles 154a to 154p were included to the constitution. Under the article 154(a) 1 and Eighth Schedule to the constitution provisions were made available to establish Nine Provincial Councils namely Western, North Central, Uva, Sabaragamuwa, Central, Eastern, Southern, North-Central and Northern. As per the article 154(a) 3, it is possible to create One Provincial Council for two or three adjoining provinces.
The first election for Provincial Councils took place on 28th April, 1988 in North Central, North-Western, Sabaragamuwa and Uva Provinces. The next Provincial Council election took place on 02nd June, 1988 in Central, Southern and Western Provinces. Election for merged North- Eastern Provincial Council was held on 19th December, 1988. Accordingly, Eight Provincial Councils were established. In the 13th amendment to the constitution, there was a provision to appoint a governor to every provincial council. The Governor is the representative of the president as well as the Chief Executive Officer of the Province.
According to the article 154 (c) of the Constitution, number of members of a Provincial Council is decided by considering its population and area of the Province.
Provincial Council Act No. 42 of 1987 provided for the procedure to be followed at the Provincial Council meetings, the matters relating to Provincial Public Service and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. This act comprises 4 parts while part I considers regarding membership of a Provincial Council, Part II considers regarding meetings and conduct of Business of Provincial Councils, Part III considers regarding the Provincial Council Fund while Part IV considers about the Provincial Public Service Commission.
Provincial Council (Consequential Provisions) Act No. 12 of 1989 was enacted to make provisions for easy and efficient performance of the Provincial Councils.
Later, Provincial Council Act was amended by Provincial Council (Amendment) Act No. 27 of 1990, Act No. 28 of 1990 and Act No. 13 of 2010. Additional provisions for legal and administrative structures established under the Provincial Councils were made available by the following acts.
    Provincial Council (Amendment) Act No. 27 of 1990.
    Provincial Council (Amendment) Act No. 28 of 1990.
    Provincial Council (Amendment) Act No. 13 of 2010.
Additional provisions for legal and administrative structures established under the Provincial Councils were made available by the following acts.
Provincial Council Pensions fund Act No. 17 of 1993 Provincial High Courts (Special Provisions) Act No. 19 of 1993 Provincial High Courts (Special Provisions) (Amendment) Act No. 54 of 2006. Provincial Council (Payment of Salaries and allowances) Act No. 37 of 1988.
Establishment and expansion of Sabaragamuwa Provincial Council.
Sabaragamuwa Provincial Council was established by the Provincial Council Elections Act No. 02 of 1998, under the provisions of Provincial Council Act No. 42 of 1987 and 13th amendment to the Constitution. Sabaragamuwa Province comprises two districts namely Ratnapura and Kegalle and for the Ratnapura district, 22 members and for the Kegalle district 20 members were elected by the election and 2 bonus seats were given to the party that obtained highest votes. Accordingly total number of members in the Sabaragamuwa Provincial Council is 44 members.
First Provincial Council election was held on 28.04.1988 and it was constituted on 12.05.1988. Later first meeting was held on 12.05.1988 at the Provincial Council conference hall situated in the Ratnapura District Secretariat premises. Holding elections, first meetings and dissolving of Sabaragamuwa provincial council could be categorized as follows.
Election Date First Meeting Day of dissolving
First 1998.04.28 1988.05.12 1993.03.15
Second 1993.05.17 1993.06.22 1998.06.21
Third 1994.04.05 1999.06.17 2004.07.23
Fourth 2004.07.10 2004.07.23 2008.06.09
Fifth 2008.08.23 2008.09.11 2012.06.27
Sixth 2012.09.08 2012.09.27 2017.09.27

Under the decentralized powers, 1 municipal council, 3 urban councils and 25 Pradesiya Sabhas are operated in the Sabaragamuwa Province. Following statutory bodies too have established under the supervision and manipulation of the Sabaragamuwa Provincial Council.

Road Passenger Transport Authority
Pre-childhood Development Authority
Industrial Development Authority
Development Creation & Mechanical Authority
Iparanigama Theme Park, Pinnawala

 

Sabaragamuwa Provincial Council Mace

Sabaragamuwa Provincial Council Committees
Provincial Public Accounts Committee

It is the responsibility of the Provincial Public Accounts Committee to examine the accounts that displays the manner of spending money given by the Council to bear the expenses and other accounts submitted to the Council.

The Committee should submit its reports to the Council from time to time in respect of examined accounts, money, accounts procedures, performance, management or anything relevant to that of any Ministry or institution of the Province that receive allocation from the Provincial Council Fund.

The Committee could appoint sub committees comprising its own members, whenever feels necessary in order to report to the Provincial Council having examined all the accounts, financial status and Management of the Ministry or Institution as ordered by the Committee.

The Committee or its sub committees authorized by the committee has power to summon and interrogate any individual or examine any leaflet, books, reports or documents belongs to a Ministry of the Provincial Council or to enter into a Stores or property of any Ministry, Department or Authority of the Provincial Council.

Necessary facilities to perform the duties should be supplied by the Council Secretary on the instructions of the Chairman.

 

Public Petition Committee

As per the rule 91(1) of the Code of Procedure Rules, main responsibilities of the Public Petition Committee are,
to take necessary steps after reviewing petitions referred to the Public Petition Committee by the Secretary.

to submit recommendations to the relevant Minister regarding the increase of productivity, efficiency by minimizing the waste of the projects implemented by using allocations of the Provincial Council.
to examine the petitions received from the members of the Provincial Council or from the general public regarding such projects and inform to the Minister, where it is necessary.

If it is decided by the committee that any public officer is liable for infringement of any fundamental right or any other injustice, it should be sent to the Commissioner General of Parliament for reviewing.
It has authority to summon and interrogate any person relevant to a petition or any officer of the Provincial Council and to examine books, reports and documents.

The committee should assemble at least once a month.
Should submit to the Provincial Council regarding it activities at least once in a 3 months’ time.

 

Committee of Statutes and Rules

The Committee should consider regarding the legality of any statute, law or regulation and point out its short comings and the places that should be amended.
The Committee should give instructions if the Provincial Council is intervening to a judicial activity.

When a statute is referred to the statute committee by the Presidential Secretariat or by the Parliament under the rule 63, the statute committee should inform the Provincial Council regarding the directions to be followed. The Committee should meet within 3 days and the following day, the report should be handed over to the Minister in-charge of the Subject, if it fallen to the list 1 of the 9th schedule otherwise the report should be handed over to the Secretary in order to include to the agenda of the next meeting if it falls into the 3rd list of the 9th schedule.

When the proposed statute or the matter is submitted to the committee, recommendations should be given subject to the relevant conditions.

When a proposed law or statute is considered by the committee, the relevant Minister in-charge of the subject is allowed to participate to the committee meeting.

Inquiries from the Parliament by the Provincial Council regarding any statute relevant to the list 3 of the 9th schedule of the constitution and Inquiries from the Provincial Council by the Parliament regarding same as above, should be referred to the statute and rules committee.

If the recommendation of the statute committee is needed immediately regarding a statute relevant to the list 3 of the 9th schedule of the constitution, if the member is submitting it to the Secretary with a special note, the Secretary should consult the Chairman and steps should be taken to assemble the Statute Committee as early as possible.