The Opposition has been thrown into disarray following the passage of the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution, Health Minister Nalinda Jayatissa said on Monday, according to the Daily Mirror.
Speaking to reporters, Jayatissa said the Opposition had lost much of its previous strength, and that a serious crisis had also emerged within the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB), the main opposition party.
”The divisions are acute”
“Although they voted together in Parliament on the 22A, the divisions within the Opposition are acute.”
Jayatissa also said the Opposition had faced further turmoil after an unsuccessful attempt to stage a protest without a clear political slogan.
Context
Parliament passed the 22nd Amendment 158 votes to 63 on 25 September. Opposition parties had campaigned against it on the grounds that changes to judicial retirement ages and the composition of the courts threatened judicial independence — but the final vote split the chamber lopsidedly, with a substantial share of opposition members backing it.
The protest Jayatissa referred to is not named in the Daily Mirror’s report. The SJB held a demonstration at Polduwa Junction against the amendment on 24 September, the day before the vote.
Strain inside the opposition ranks has surfaced repeatedly since the vote. SLPP MP Bimal Rathnayake walked back a claim of division within the government days later, and NPP Executive Council member Lal Wijenayake confirmed he will stay with the governing party despite opposing 22A.
What is not established
Jayatissa is a government minister and a National People’s Power figure describing his opponents’ condition; the remarks are a political characterisation, not a neutral account. No opposition response was carried in the report, and no other verified newsroom had published the remarks at the time of writing.
