New Speaker, Deputy, Deputy Chairman of Committees to be elected :
President to present policy statement at 11.30 am:
The inaugural session of Sri Lanka’s 10th Parliament is set to commence today (21), at 10 a.m. During this session, newly elected MPs will take their oaths, and the Parliament will elect a new Speaker, Deputy Speaker, and Deputy Chairman of Committees.
On the first day of the Parliament, the primary responsibilities within the Chamber are entrusted to the Secretary-General of Parliament Kushani Rohanadheera. According to her, Members of Parliament are not assigned specific seating arrangements on this day and are allowed to sit in any seat of their choice.
Following the placement of the mace in the Chamber by the Serjeant-at-Arms Kushan Jayaratne, the Secretary-General will present to Parliament, as the first business of the day, the Extraordinary Gazette Notification issued by the President, which specifies the date and time for the convening of Parliament.
Subsequently, in accordance with Article 64(1) of the Constitution and Standing Orders 4, 5, and 6 of Parliament, the Speaker is elected by vote, followed by the administration of the official affirmation or oath of office by the Speaker. Thereafter, Members of Parliament take their official affirmation or oath, and the Deputy Speaker and Deputy Chairperson of Committees are elected by vote. At the end of these preliminary proceedings, Parliament will be temporarily suspended and in accordance with the provisions of Articles 32(4) and 33 of the Constitution, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake will present the government’s policy statement to Parliament from the chair of the House at 11.30 am.
In order to participate in the opening meeting of the tenth Parliament, the Secretary General of the Parliament has informed all the members to be present in Parliament by 9am. After arriving at the Parliament, the cars of the MPs will be directed to the designated parking lot by the police officers and after that the MPs should come to the entrance hall of the Parliament and wait there until the quorum bell is rung.
Members of Parliament have been informed that if they are coming with their spouses, they should alight from their vehicles in front of the staff entrance gate of the Parliament and all other Members should get out of their vehicles in front of the members entrance gate.