By Franklyn R. Satyapalan
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe yesterday asked President Chandrika Kumaratunga to allow him the prerogative of appointing his own Cabinet even as the swearing-in of seven new Ministers was delayed again.

At present, the Constitution empowers the President to appoint the Cabinet and deems it the task of the Executive.

Six ministers of non-Cabinet rank were to be promoted to status of Cabinet Ministers before Kumaratunga at a function scheduled for 11 am yesterday. S. B. Dissanayake was to take over the portfolio of Samurdhi at the same time. However, the ceremony was put off yesterday after Kumaratunga reportedly continued to insist that Dissanayake cannot have Samurdhi. This resulted in the other non-cabinet Ministers refusing to be sworn in.

Wiuckremesinghe, in an attempt to break the deadlock, held a hurried meeting with Kumaratunga at President’s House. The meeting was on at the time this edition went to press. Informed UNP sources said that Ministers Karunasena Kodituwakku, Jayalath Jayawardena, Rajitha Senaratne, Milinda Moragoda, Imthiaz Bakeer Markar, Mahinda Samarasinghe and P. Chandrasekeran were adamant that the President should accede to Dissanayake’s appointment as Samurdhi Minister. The swearing-in ceremony, which was originally to have taken place last week, was put off several times since. Among the main reasons was the dispute over the Samurdhi Ministry. Kumaratunga has consistently protested against it being given to Dissanayake.