State Power
The Government of Sri Lanka and the structure of government are provided in the Constitution of Sri Lanka. The constitution identifies and seeks to separate the three pillars of government, i.e. the Executive, the Legislative and the Judicial branches.
The legislative power of the people is generally exercised through the Parliament of Sri Lanka consisting of the representatives of the people while it may also be exercised directly by the people of Sri Lanka at a “Referendum”.
The present constitution of Sri Lanka made a fundamental change in the form of government from the previous Constitution with the introduction of office of the Executive President.
Accordingly, the constitution provides that the executive power of the people including the defense of Sri Lanka is exercised through the President of Sri Lanka.
The judicial power of the people is exercised through the courts and tribunals of Sri Lanka which are established by the constitution and other laws of Sri Lanka.
The Government of Sri Lanka
The Government of Sri Lanka is combination of the presidential form of government and the Westminster form of government. The Government of Sri Lanka consists of the Cabinet of Ministers. Unlike in the Westminster form of government where the Prime Minister is the Head of government, the Government of Sri Lanka is headed by the Executive President, who is also a member of the Cabinet.
According to the Constitution of Sri Lanka the Cabinet of Ministers are charged with the direction and control of the Government of Sri Lanka. The Cabinet is collectively responsible and answerable to the Parliament.
The members of Cabinet of Ministers are also members of the Parliament. In other words Cabinet Ministers are appointed from among the members of Parliament by the President of Sri Lanka.
The Cabinet Ministers are assigned various subjects and functions, by the President of Sri Lanka in consultation with the Prime Minister. The Ministers are invariably the Heads of the Ministries and Departments of the Government which comes under their subjects and functions.
The Prime Minister of Sri Lanka is key member of the Cabinet and represents the President and the views of the Government in the Parliament. According to the Constitution, the President appoints as Prime Minister a Member of Parliament who commands the majority in the Parliament.
The Government authorities, such as the Ministries and Departments as well as the semi Government authorities are empowered to implement the executive decisions and policies of the Government of Sri Lanka as well as to participate in the formulation of policies.
The Government is assisted by the Public Service which consists of over 1 million public servants to implement the government policies and decision effectively.
The Public Service is regulated and administered by the Public Service Commission, an independent body which was set up under the 17th Amendment to the Constitution of Sri Lanka. The appointments, transfers, etc of the public servants are carried out by the Public Service Commission, thus ensuring the independence of the public service from political interference.
