The ceremonial opening of the Second Session of the Ninth Parliament is scheduled to get underway this morning (Jan. 18), under the patronage of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.
The Head of State will subsequently present the Government Policy Statement in Parliament at 10.00 a.m. in accordance with the powers vested in him by Article 33 (2) of the Constitution.
On the instructions of the President, arrangements have been made to hold the ceremony in a very simple manner and thus there will be no gun salutes or car parades.
Instead, the President will be received in front of Parliament with a cultural salute with the participation of the Police Cultural Division.
The arrival of the invited guests will take place at 9.15 a.m. The Members of Parliament are expected to arrive first, followed by Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena, Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa and President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.
Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena and the Secretary-General of Parliament Mr. Dhammika Dasanayaka accord a warm welcome to the President at the main steps of the Parliament building.
The Speaker and the Secretary-General of Parliament will then escort the President to Parliament House along with the Serjeant-at-Arms, Deputy Serjeant-at-Arms and Assistant Serjeant-at-Arms.
The students of President’s Girls’ College, Sri Jayewardenepura are lining up for the recital of Jayamangala Gatha at the main entrance of the Parliament Building in welcoming the President.
Following the presentation of the Government Policy Statement by the President, the House will be adjourned. Afterwards, a tea party has been organized for the Members of Parliament and invited guests.
Foreign diplomats, former Presidents, Prime Ministers, Chief Justice, Supreme Court Justices and the Attorney General have been invited to the ceremonial opening of the second session of the Ninth Parliament.
The second session of the Ninth Parliament will be ceremonially opened while adhering to all health guidelines, the Secretary General of Parliament has said.
The President had prorogued Parliament from midnight on December 12, 2021, through an Extraordinary Gazette notification, by virtue of the powers vested in him by Article 70 of the Constitution.
