Election Commission/Commissioner must ensure no DUAL CITIZENS / FOREIGN CITIZENS give nominations
If there is a constitutional provision claiming no dual citizens / foreign citizens can sit in Parliament, how is this provision to be honored or checked? The best & only way is for the Election Commission/Commissioner to ensure that they do not accept any nominations of those who are dual citizens. Such nominations must be rejected by the Election Commission & the Election Commission is dutybound to the People to ensure they have not accepted nominations of dual citizens/foreign citizens. This was a major lapse in the 2020 elections. The Election Commission or Commissioner cannot slide from upholding this provision in the Constitution this election.
We cannot expect candidates to be honest enough to write in their nomination papers that they are dual citizens knowing they will get rejected. That mistake was made by MP Geetha Kumarasinghe who had to forfeit her seat in Parliament as a result of declaring she was a dual citizen. However, it was believed that many inside Parliament who were dual citizens kept quiet & ended up getting a state pension at the end of 5 years.
How does the Election Commission check whether nominees are dual citizens/foreign citizens? There are several ways they can do so. The immigration & emigration is the best place to start. Candidates can be asked to give affidavits that they are not dual citizens which would hold them accountable if they are. Either way, if there is a constitutional provision, the Election Commission has to find a way to ascertain that the Legislature does not have dual citizens. The Election Commission cannot escape this duty. The Legislature is the key place that laws are made, if a law has been passed that no dual citizens or foreign citizens can hold Public Office, then the gate that such people can enter needs to be stopped, this is gate of handing nominations to contest elections to enter Parliament.
Thus, the Election Commission that failed to do its duty in the 2019/2020/2024 elections must do so at least now.
Have they even inserted this requirement in the recent nomination forms? If no, the Election Commission is not fulfilling a key duty.
It is baffling that those who are eternally chanting “anti-corruption” do not take issue regarding dual citizens entering parliament because the Election Commission is not taking provisions to stop such candidates handing nominations. In fact, the general public & all good governance promoters must demand that the Election Commission reject all dual citizen nominations. Otherwise, this constitutional provision becomes a ridiculous inclusion which is not taken seriously even by the so-called independent Election Commission.
With today being the last day to hand over nominations, the Election Commission must issue a statement regarding the status of Dual Citizens & Foreign Citizens & ensure they do not accept nominations of dual citizens/foreign citizens. The legal fraternity must come forward to ensure the Election Commission does not relegate on their duty to uphold the Constitution of Sri Lanka.
Shenali D Waduge
