• The Chairman has also stated that a new system should be set up for the registration of political parties
• Political parties should be classified as nationally recognized political parties, registered parties and regional parties

By Ajith Siriwardana and Yohan Perera

The Election Commission has proposed to the Parliamentary Select Committee on electoral reforms empowering the Commission to prosecute election offences and  to establish a new Election Tribunal. 

Election Commission Chairman Nimal Punchihewa has made the proposal during a meeting of the PSC to Identify Appropriate Reforms of the Election Laws and the Electoral System and to Recommend Necessary Amendments on Wednesday.

The Chairman has also stated that a new system should be set up for the registration of political parties, the Communications Department of Parliament said.

“Certain political parties are limited to only one district. There are also problems in the party registration criteria,” he said.

He has suggested to the Committee that political parties should be classified as nationally recognized political parties, registered parties and regional parties and that a system should be established to register them.
The Commission was of the view that the depositing of deposits, which was restricted to independent political parties, should be extended to recognized political parties as well. They also said that the method of depositing money should be revised from time to time. The distribution of official ballot papers is done only by the Postal Department and the Commission pointed out the need to use alternative methods for this purpose. The Commission also suggested that the election laws be amended to enable voters queuing up to cast their ballots at the last moment of polling to cast their votes.

"The Elections Commission is of the view that a mixed proportional representation system is appropriate for the country,” Mr. Punchihewa said.

He suggested that the number of seats in Parliament should remain the same at 225, of which 140 should be elected at the divisional level, 70 under the district proportional system and 15 under the National List.
The Elections Commission was of the view that the right to early voting should be guaranteed and special polling stations should be set up for tha purpose. The Elections Commission emphasized that there should be a mechanism to recall the people’s representatives and a suitable mechanism should be set up for that.