Publications Type

President’s Executive Powers: Demystifying the 19A Bill Ruling

“Can the President’s executive powers be controlled through strengthening the Prime Minister’s functions without a referendum?” – This question has generated much commentary and dominated many discussions after the recent Supreme Court Ruling on the 19th Amendment Bill. This brief seeks to demystify and concisely explain two major principles on which the ruling was framed and explain in terms thereof, their implications for the executive power and office of the President, outlining the type of relevant constitutional changes that requires a referendum and the type that doesn’t.

Power Cuts in Sri Lanka 2012

This report provides a detailed analysis of the main reasons attributed to the power crisis prevailing in Sri Lanka during a greater part of the year. It identifies how these reasons; namely, the unexpected high growth in demand, shortage in generation capacity, reduced rainfall in catchment areas and the breakdown of the Chinese-built coal power station, cannot fully explain the crisis. The report also classifies a policy decision which has been implemented to reduce costs but may have been utilized rather aggressively, resulting to have contributed to the power crisis.

Employees Provident Fund (EPF)

The EPF’s management of equity investments are seriously at odds with its mission. It has hugely underperformed the All Share Price Index (ASPI), and earned only one fourth of what it would have earned if the same investment had been placed with the usual no-risk-low-return government securities, where 95% of the EPF funds are placed. Additionally, in 2010, the Employee’s Trust Fund’s (ETF) investments in equity performed 6 times better than the EPF’s investments in equity.