President recommends Latimer house principles for right balance - Raja Goonaratne

Colombo (News 1st): Speaking to News 1st Attorney-at-Law and Head of the Legal Studies Department of the Open University Raja Goonaratne commented about the Constitutional Council. He noted that the question now is if the President recommends the Latimer house principles. He noted that Latimer house principles are relevant to all Commonwealth countries that deal with how the balance between the judiciary and the executive should be maintained. Goonaratne noted that according to these principles, the President recommends a number of career judges in the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal to be promoted. He recommends it to the council for their approval and the constitutional council rejects his recommendations without reason. As a result, he said these career judges are deprived of their right to promotions. He questioned; "Can the Constitutional Council act in this arbitrary manner without giving reasons on decisions?" Therefore, Raja Goonaratne notes that the constitutional council has become a totally political institution.The council is a political institution that demotivates persons and this could be the reason it can't come up with valid reasons for its decisions.