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Executive brinkmanship
Sunday Island
|December 28, 2025
Pressure is mounting on President Anura Kumara Dissanayake to ensure that an Auditor General is appointed without further delay.
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But he has remained unmoved. He is determined to wear down the Constitutional Council (CC) and appoint one of his party loyalists as Auditor General. The CC has rejected his nominees—and rightly so; they are not eligible. Former Executive Presidents went all out to railroad the CC into rubber-stamping their decisions. They had no qualms about doing so while claiming to uphold the independence of the public service. President Dissanayake has failed to be different. His refusal to compromise amounts to brinkmanship; he is waiting until the CC blinks.
The NPP's election manifesto, A Thriving Nation: A Beautiful Life, attributes the deterioration of the public service to 'political appointments' and state workers making political decisions. Among the steps the NPP has promised to take to straighten up the public service are 'merit-based appointments and promotions'. This principle has fallen by the wayside where the question of appointing the Auditor General is concerned.
This story is from the December 28, 2025 edition of Sunday Island.
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