• Deshapriya says EC keen to hold elections provided no legal impediment crops up 
• Insists work has been continuing, hopes to wrap-up postal vote process by mid-June 
• Health guidelines already received, says not just Gen. Elections but also PC polls likely to be held with COVID-19 
• Contends South Korean and SL elections cannot be compared as local candidates have tough time accepting they have lost  

Election Commission (EC) Chairman Mahinda Deshapriya yesterday insisted the Commission is dedicated to hold the Parliamentary Election in Sri Lanka as soon as possible but would need 60-70 days to prepare as the logistics would require a larger than normal staff. 

The Supreme Court decision on holding the election on 20 June will be given today. However, Deshapriya releasing a statement via the Government Information Department insisted there was no possibility of the Commission holding the General Election on 20 June as announced earlier. The Commission Chairman also said efforts would be made to update the election register.  

“An appropriate date will be decided on by the EC provided there are no legal obstacles. The EC expects to hold the elections as soon as possible following health authority guidelines. The EC does not wish to delay the election and strongly believes a new Parliament is essential for Sri Lanka. 

“In the meantime we have continued our duties, the postal voting process largely completed. At this point since we are hoping to involve public healthcare workers in election duties, we need extra time for the postal vote process but we are confident this can be completed by the second or third week of June,” Deshapriya said. 

He said the Commission has already received guidelines for the elections but warned about 60-70 days will be needed as there is need to deploy a larger than usually staff to conduct the poll due to COVID-19 restrictions and challenges. “At no point has the EC ever attempted to delay elections nor will it engage in such behaviour in the future,” he stressed.  

Deshapriya estimated that the cost of the election will about Rs. 6.5 billion to Rs. 7 billion but conceded that costs may escalate. However, he was confident that the necessary funds would be provided by the Treasury.  

“The country is slowly returning to a new normal or reasonable normal and society has to adjust to it. These special measures will not be just for the General Election but also for the Provincial Council Elections, which will likely be held under COVID-19 conditions, after the Parliamentary Elections,” he warned. 

The Commission Chairman also dismissed comparisons with the recent South Korean election, pointing out that Korean elections and Sri Lankan elections were vastly different. He made the point that in South Korea even though voting is done using ballot papers, the counting is mechanical and therefore in much less danger of infectious spread. He also argued the Korean election system was much simpler, whereas Sri Lanka’s preferential vote system was among the most complex in the world. 

“Our system poses very frightening situations on the counting officers. No matter how carefully counting is done, even when there isn’t a computer in sight and counting is done by hand, those outside still claim results have been changed. Even at the point nominations are handed over, three people have already lost because of the limited number of seats. But all candidates campaign thinking they will win so none of them accept they have lost. So the counting in Korea and the counting in Sri Lanka cannot be compared,” he said.           

SC order on Gazettes challenging Parliament dissolution and poll date today