The appointment of a new Auditor General has been further delayed after the candidate proposed by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake to fill the position in an acting capacity failed to secure the minimum votes required for approval by the Constitutional Council (CC).
President Dissanayake had recommended Senior Deputy Auditor General L.S.I. Jayaratne to serve as Acting Auditor General for a period of three months.
Under the Constitution, a minimum of five votes out of the 10-member CC are required for an appointment to be approved or rejected. If the minimum number of votes is not obtained, the recommendation is considered to have failed.
This follows the CC’s earlier rejection of two other candidates put forward by the President to fill the vacancy.
During the CC meeting on Friday, chaired by Speaker Jagath Wickramaratne, one of the three civil society members on the Council raised objections to Ms. Jayaratne’s nomination, citing details of investigations into various allegations against her.
When the vote was held, four members supported the nominee, two opposed her, and two abstained. Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa was not present at the meeting.
