Trincomalee Urban Council
Encyclopedia
Trincomalee Urban Council (TUC) is the local authority
for the city of Trincomalee
in eastern Sri Lanka
. TUC is responsible for providing a variety of local public services including roads, sanitation, drains, housing, libraries, public parks and recreational facilities. It has 12 members elected using the open list
proportional representation system.
(home of President Mahinda Rajapaksa
) and Akkaraipattu
(home of Local Government Minister A. L. M. Athaullah
), have been promoted to Municipal Council but Trincomalee has been overlooked.
Point Pedro didn't have an elected local government for sporadic periods, this was due to various reasons. Aljazeera, the Asiafoundation and the Daily Mirror attribute this to civil war
; Reuters
and the US State Department attribute this to calls for election boycotts by the LTTE (enforced with brutal reprisals for non compliance) and the Tamilnet
attribute it to The Sri Lankan government's suspension of all local government in the north
and east
of the country in 1983 using Emergency Regulations. Trincomalee was administered by special commissioners until 1994 when local elections were held. The council was dissolved in 1999. Special commissioners administered the city until the 2006 elections.
The following candidates were elected:
Subramaniam Gowrimuhunthan (TNA), 6,115 preference votes (pv); Kanthasamy Selvarajah (TNA), 5,994 pv; Kandiah Thurairajah (TNA), 5,400 pv; Jeganathan Pulendraraj (TNA), 5,027 pv; Perumal Muniayandy (TNA), 2,717 pv; Sithiravelu Arudchelvam (TNA), 2,237 pv; Thandayuthapani Karikalan (TNA), 2,099 pv; Ratnasabapathy Navaratnarajah Varathan (TNA), 1,926 pv; Sultan Farook (Ind-UPFA), 1,650 pv; Abdul Hussein Sahul Hameed (TNA), 1,516 pv; Kanmany Amma Ratnavadivel (TNA), 1,294 pv; and Nahoor Noor Mohamed (Ind-UNP), 1,286 pv.
Subramaniam Gowrimuhunthan (TNA) and Kanthasamy Selvarajah (TNA) were appointed Chairman and Deputy Chairman respectively.
The term of the council was due to expire in 2010 but on 22 December 2009 Minister of Local Government and Provincial Councils Janaka Bandara Tennakoon
extended it until 31 March 2011.
Subramaniam Gowrimuhunthan (TNA) and Kanmany Amma Ratnavadivel (TNA) were suspended from their party for contesting the 2010 parliamentary election
for the Tamil National People's Front
(against the TNA). Subramaniam Gowrimuhunthan (TNA) was subsequently removed from the Chairmanship in August 2010 and replaced by Kanthasamy Selvarajah (TNA).
held on 17 March 2011:
The following candidates were elected: Sithiravelu Arudchelvam (TNA); Dharmarasa Gowrimuhunthan (TNA); P. W. Susantha Jayalath (JVP); Kalirajah Kokulraj (TNA); Galappaththige Saman Kumara (UPFA); Nahoor Noor Mohamed (UPFA); Sivasubramaniam Nandakumar (TNA); Saboordeen Sanoon (UNP); Nagalingam Satheeskanna (TNA); Konamalai Saththiyaseelarajah (TNA); Kanthasamy Selvarajah (TNA); and Senathirajah Siriskandarajah (TNA).
Kanthasamy Selvarajah of TNA and Senathirajah Siriskandarajah of TNA were appointed Chairman and Deputy Chairman respectively.
Local government in Sri Lanka
Local government is the third and lowest level of government in Sri Lanka - after the central government and provincial councils. The local government bodies are collectively known as local authorities. They are responsible for providing a variety of local public services including roads,...
for the city of Trincomalee
Trincomalee
Trincomalee is a port city in Eastern Province, Sri Lanka and lies on the east coast of the island, about 113 miles south of Jaffna. It has a population of approximately 100,000 . The city is built on a peninsula, which divides the inner and outer harbours. Overlooking the Kottiyar Bay,...
in eastern Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
. TUC is responsible for providing a variety of local public services including roads, sanitation, drains, housing, libraries, public parks and recreational facilities. It has 12 members elected using the open list
Open list
Open list describes any variant of party-list proportional representation where voters have at least some influence on the order in which a party's candidates are elected...
proportional representation system.
History
Trincomalee was administered by a Local Board between 1884 and 1933. Between 1933 and 1939 the city administered by a Local Development Board. The city was promoted to an Urban Council on 1 January 1940. Trincomalee is the largest city in Sri Lanka without municipality status. Cities and towns with much lower population than Trincomalee, such as HambantotaHambantota
Hambantota is a coastal city in the south of Sri Lanka. It is the capital of the Hambantota District...
(home of President Mahinda Rajapaksa
Mahinda Rajapaksa
Percy Mahendra "Mahinda" Rajapaksa ; ; born November 18, 1945) is the 6th and current President of Sri Lanka and Commander in Chief of the Sri Lankan Armed Forces. A lawyer by profession, Rajapaksa was first elected to the Parliament of Sri Lanka in 1970, and served as prime minister from April 6,...
) and Akkaraipattu
Akkaraipattu
Akkaraipattu is a town in the Ampara District of Sri Lanka, and is located along the Eastern coast of the Island. Akkaraipattu consists of over 35,000 people who settled in this area many centuries ago...
(home of Local Government Minister A. L. M. Athaullah
A. L. M. Athaullah
Ahamed Lebbe Maraikkar Athaullah is a Sri Lankan politician. He is a representative of Ampara for the United People's Freedom Alliance in the Parliament of Sri Lanka, and was the Minister of Water Supply and Drainage. He is an Old Boy of Akkaraipattu Muslim Central College.-References:...
), have been promoted to Municipal Council but Trincomalee has been overlooked.
1983 local government election
Results of the local government election held on 18 May 1983:| Alliances and parties | |% | |Seats | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tamil United Liberation Front Tamil United Liberation Front The Tamil United Liberation Front is a political party in Sri Lanka which seeks independence for the Tamil-populated areas of Sri Lanka.-Formation:... |
10,940 | 69.58% | 9 | |
| United National Party United National Party The United National Party, often referred to as the UNP ), , is a political party in Sri Lanka. It currently is the main opposition party in Sri Lanka and is headed by Ranil Wickremesinghe... |
2,542 | 16.17% | 2 | |
| Sri Lanka Freedom Party Sri Lanka Freedom Party The Sri Lanka Freedom Party is one of the major political parties in Sri Lanka. It was founded by S.W.R.D Bandaranaike in 1951 and, since then, has been one of the two largest parties in the Sri Lankan political arena. It first came to power in 1956 and since then has been the predominant party in... |
2,135 | 13.58% | 1 | |
| All Ceylon Tamil Congress All Ceylon Tamil Congress All Ceylon Tamil Congress , is the oldest Tamil political party in Sri Lanka.-History:The ACTC was founded in 1944 by G.G. Ponnambalam. Ponnambalam asked for a 50-50 representation in parliament... |
106 | 0.67% | 0 | |
| Valid Votes | 15,723 | 100.00% | 12 | |
| Rejected Votes | 77 | |||
| Total Polled | 15,800 | |||
| Registered Electors | 24,529 | |||
| Turnout | 64.41% | |||
Point Pedro didn't have an elected local government for sporadic periods, this was due to various reasons. Aljazeera, the Asiafoundation and the Daily Mirror attribute this to civil war
Sri Lankan civil war
The Sri Lankan Civil War was a conflict fought on the island of Sri Lanka. Beginning on July 23, 1983, there was an on-and-off insurgency against the government by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam , a separatist militant organization which fought to create an independent Tamil state named Tamil...
; Reuters
Reuters
Reuters is a news agency headquartered in New York City. Until 2008 the Reuters news agency formed part of a British independent company, Reuters Group plc, which was also a provider of financial market data...
and the US State Department attribute this to calls for election boycotts by the LTTE (enforced with brutal reprisals for non compliance) and the Tamilnet
Tamilnet
TamilNet is a news website that provides news and feature articles on current affairs in Sri Lanka, specifically related to the erstwhile Sri Lankan Civil War...
attribute it to The Sri Lankan government's suspension of all local government in the north
Northern Province, Sri Lanka
The Northern Province is one of the 9 provinces of Sri Lanka. The provinces have existed since the 19th century but did not have any legal status until 1987 when the 13th Amendment to the 1978 Constitution of Sri Lanka established provincial councils. Between 1988 and 2006 the province was...
and east
Eastern Province, Sri Lanka
The Eastern Province is one of the 9 provinces of Sri Lanka. The provinces have existed since the 19th century but they didn't have any legal status until 1987 when the 13th Amendment to the 1978 Constitution of Sri Lanka established provincial councils. Between 1988 and 2006 the province was...
of the country in 1983 using Emergency Regulations. Trincomalee was administered by special commissioners until 1994 when local elections were held. The council was dissolved in 1999. Special commissioners administered the city until the 2006 elections.
2006 local government election
Results of the local government election held on 30 March 2006:| Alliances and parties | |% | |Seats | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tamil National Alliance Tamil National Alliance The Tamil National Alliance is a powerful minority Sri Lankan Tamil political alliance in Sri Lanka. It was formed as an amalgamation of moderate Tamil parties as well as number of former rebel groups... (ITAK Illankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi Illankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi is a Sri Lankan political party which represents the Sri Lankan Tamil ethnic minority in the country. It was originally formed in 1949 as breakaway faction of the All Ceylon Tamil Congress... , EPRLF (S) Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front The Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front is a Sri Lankan political party and a former militant separatist group.-Militant separatists:The EPRLF was formed in 1980 by K... , TELO Tamil Eelam Liberation Organization The Tamil Eelam Liberation Organization is an Eelam Tamil organisation campaigning for the establishment of an independent Tamil Eelam in the northeast of Sri Lanka. The TELO was originally created as a militant group, and functioned as such until 1986, when most of its membership was killed in a... ) |
16,368 | 75.06% | 10 | |
| Independent Independent (politician) In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do... (UPFA United People's Freedom Alliance The United People's Freedom Alliance is a political alliance in Sri Lanka. The current leader of the United People's Freedom Alliance is Mahinda Rajapaksa and Susil Premajayantha is the general secretary of UPFA.The alliance was formed by:... , UNP United National Party The United National Party, often referred to as the UNP ), , is a political party in Sri Lanka. It currently is the main opposition party in Sri Lanka and is headed by Ranil Wickremesinghe... , SLMC Sri Lanka Muslim Congress The Sri Lanka Muslim Congress is a political party in Sri Lanka. The party was formed at a meeting held at Kattankudy in 1981 by a small study group of local Eastern Province political leaders.... , NESO) |
4,286 | 19.65% | 2 | |
| Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna The Janathā Vimukthi Peramuṇa is a Marxist-Leninist, Communist political party in Sri Lanka. The party was involved in two armed uprisings against the ruling governments in 1971 and 1987-89... |
895 | 4.10% | 0 | |
| Eelam People's Democratic Party Eelam People's Democratic Party The Eelam People's Democratic Party is a political party and a pro-government paramilitary organization in Sri Lanka. It is led by its founder Douglas Devananda.-Background:... |
259 | 1.19% | 0 | |
| Valid Votes | 21,808 | 100.00% | 12 | |
| Rejected Votes | 935 | |||
| Total Polled | 22,743 | |||
| Registered Electors | 36,961 | |||
| Turnout | 61.53% | |||
The following candidates were elected:
Subramaniam Gowrimuhunthan (TNA), 6,115 preference votes (pv); Kanthasamy Selvarajah (TNA), 5,994 pv; Kandiah Thurairajah (TNA), 5,400 pv; Jeganathan Pulendraraj (TNA), 5,027 pv; Perumal Muniayandy (TNA), 2,717 pv; Sithiravelu Arudchelvam (TNA), 2,237 pv; Thandayuthapani Karikalan (TNA), 2,099 pv; Ratnasabapathy Navaratnarajah Varathan (TNA), 1,926 pv; Sultan Farook (Ind-UPFA), 1,650 pv; Abdul Hussein Sahul Hameed (TNA), 1,516 pv; Kanmany Amma Ratnavadivel (TNA), 1,294 pv; and Nahoor Noor Mohamed (Ind-UNP), 1,286 pv.
Subramaniam Gowrimuhunthan (TNA) and Kanthasamy Selvarajah (TNA) were appointed Chairman and Deputy Chairman respectively.
The term of the council was due to expire in 2010 but on 22 December 2009 Minister of Local Government and Provincial Councils Janaka Bandara Tennakoon
Janaka Bandara Tennakoon
Janaka Bandara Tennakoon is a Sri Lankan politician and a member of the Parliament of Sri Lanka. He's currently the Minister of Lands and Land Development. He was educated at Dharmaraja College, Kandy.-References:...
extended it until 31 March 2011.
Subramaniam Gowrimuhunthan (TNA) and Kanmany Amma Ratnavadivel (TNA) were suspended from their party for contesting the 2010 parliamentary election
Sri Lankan parliamentary election, 2010
The 2010 Sri Lankan parliamentary election was held on April 8 and April 20, 2010, to elect 225 members to Sri Lanka's 14th Parliament. 14,088,500 Sri Lankans were eligible to vote in the election at 11,102 polling stations...
for the Tamil National People's Front
Tamil National People's Front
The Tamil National People's Front is a Sri Lankan political alliance which represents the Sri Lankan Tamil ethnic minority in the country. It was launched on 28 February 2010 as breakaway faction of the Tamil National Alliance...
(against the TNA). Subramaniam Gowrimuhunthan (TNA) was subsequently removed from the Chairmanship in August 2010 and replaced by Kanthasamy Selvarajah (TNA).
2011 local government election
Results of the local government electionSri Lankan local government elections, 2011
Local government elections were held in Sri Lanka on 17 March 2011, 23 July 2011 and 8 October 2011 to elect 4,327 members for 322 of the 335 local authorities in the country. 13.7 million Sri Lankans were eligible to vote in the election...
held on 17 March 2011:
| Alliances and parties | |% | |Seats | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tamil National Alliance Tamil National Alliance The Tamil National Alliance is a powerful minority Sri Lankan Tamil political alliance in Sri Lanka. It was formed as an amalgamation of moderate Tamil parties as well as number of former rebel groups... (ITAK Illankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi Illankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi is a Sri Lankan political party which represents the Sri Lankan Tamil ethnic minority in the country. It was originally formed in 1949 as breakaway faction of the All Ceylon Tamil Congress... , EPRLF (S) Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front The Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front is a Sri Lankan political party and a former militant separatist group.-Militant separatists:The EPRLF was formed in 1980 by K... , TELO Tamil Eelam Liberation Organization The Tamil Eelam Liberation Organization is an Eelam Tamil organisation campaigning for the establishment of an independent Tamil Eelam in the northeast of Sri Lanka. The TELO was originally created as a militant group, and functioned as such until 1986, when most of its membership was killed in a... , PLOTE People's Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam The People's Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam is a former Tamil militant group. It is currently a pro-government paramilitary group and political party. PLOTE's political wing is known as the Democratic People's Liberation Front.-Origins:... , TULF Tamil United Liberation Front The Tamil United Liberation Front is a political party in Sri Lanka which seeks independence for the Tamil-populated areas of Sri Lanka.-Formation:... , TNLA Tamil National Liberation Alliance The Tamil National Liberation Alliance was a Sri Lankan political alliance representing the Sri Lankan Tamil ethnic minority in the country. It was launched on 22 February 2010 as breakaway faction of the Tamil National Alliance . In June 2011 the party was dissolved and its leaders rejoined Tamil... ) |
11,601 | 59.43% | 8 | |
| United People's Freedom Alliance United People's Freedom Alliance The United People's Freedom Alliance is a political alliance in Sri Lanka. The current leader of the United People's Freedom Alliance is Mahinda Rajapaksa and Susil Premajayantha is the general secretary of UPFA.The alliance was formed by:... (SLFP Sri Lanka Freedom Party The Sri Lanka Freedom Party is one of the major political parties in Sri Lanka. It was founded by S.W.R.D Bandaranaike in 1951 and, since then, has been one of the two largest parties in the Sri Lankan political arena. It first came to power in 1956 and since then has been the predominant party in... , EPDP Eelam People's Democratic Party The Eelam People's Democratic Party is a political party and a pro-government paramilitary organization in Sri Lanka. It is led by its founder Douglas Devananda.-Background:... , et al.) |
4,137 | 21.19% | 2 | |
| United National Party United National Party The United National Party, often referred to as the UNP ), , is a political party in Sri Lanka. It currently is the main opposition party in Sri Lanka and is headed by Ranil Wickremesinghe... |
2,044 | 10.47% | 1 | |
| Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna The Janathā Vimukthi Peramuṇa is a Marxist-Leninist, Communist political party in Sri Lanka. The party was involved in two armed uprisings against the ruling governments in 1971 and 1987-89... |
519 | 2.66% | 1 | |
| All Lanka Tamil United Front | 463 | 2.37% | 0 | |
| Independent 1 Independent (politician) In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do... |
419 | 2.15% | 0 | |
| Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Pulikal | 327 | 1.68% | 0 | |
| Independent 2 Independent (politician) In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do... |
10 | 0.05% | 0 | |
| Valid Votes | 19,520 | 100.00% | 12 | |
| Rejected Votes | 560 | |||
| Total Polled | 20,080 | |||
| Registered Electors | 31,927 | |||
| Turnout | 62.89% | |||
The following candidates were elected: Sithiravelu Arudchelvam (TNA); Dharmarasa Gowrimuhunthan (TNA); P. W. Susantha Jayalath (JVP); Kalirajah Kokulraj (TNA); Galappaththige Saman Kumara (UPFA); Nahoor Noor Mohamed (UPFA); Sivasubramaniam Nandakumar (TNA); Saboordeen Sanoon (UNP); Nagalingam Satheeskanna (TNA); Konamalai Saththiyaseelarajah (TNA); Kanthasamy Selvarajah (TNA); and Senathirajah Siriskandarajah (TNA).
Kanthasamy Selvarajah of TNA and Senathirajah Siriskandarajah of TNA were appointed Chairman and Deputy Chairman respectively.