- Ministers share experiences behind bars following Mahara clash
- Basil’s visit to Parliament for a meeting builds excitement
- SLPP’s Badulla budget defeated as SLFPers point out failures
- Pressure mounts on Easter attacks and Bond Scam probes
Many have been the challenges faced by the country, mainly due to the severe blow dealt by the global Covid-19 pandemic. The re-emergence of the virus through the Minuwangoda cluster has now spread to almost every part of the country, with the Western Province being identified as the highest-risk area.
The President is contemplating changes to his Cabinet of Ministers in order to address growing issues faced by the country. The first step was the formation of two new cabinet portfolios and the appointment of Rear Admiral Dr. Sarath Weerasekera as the Cabinet Minister for Law and Order. The portfolio covering technology was retained by the President.
The second step of these planned changes took place last week.
The first was the appointment of Dr. Sudarshani Fernandopulle as the State Minister of Primary Health Care, Epidemiology, and Covid-19 Disease Control.
The new State Minister was sworn in before President Rajapaksa at the Presidential Secretariat on Monday (30 November) evening.
A doctor by profession, Fernandopulle was earlier the State Minister for Prison Reforms and Prisoner Rehabilitation.
A few days prior to Dr. Fernandopulle’s new appointment, the British Government appointed a Vaccines Minister on Saturday (28 November) as the country prepared to inoculate millions of people against Covid-19.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that Conservative lawmaker Nadhim Zahawi would oversee the UK’s biggest vaccine programme in decades.
The spread of Covid-19 in Sri Lanka and the urgent need for a proper national mechanism to address the issue undoubtedly created a requirement for an individual dedicated to hold responsibility for the sector.
Therefore, Dr. Fernandopulle’s appointment could be deemed a scientific one as well as the need of the hour.
Nevertheless, her appointment has paved the way for several questions to be posed with regard to the minister who holds the cabinet portfolio for health – Pavithra Wanniarachchi.
Until Fernandopulle’s appointment, it was Wanniarachchi who looked into matters of Covid-19-related work.
However, with a large number of subjects that were formerly under the Ministry of Health now being divided under three state ministries, the duties assigned under the Health Minister have been further reduced. As pointed out by an Opposition legislator, Wanniarachchi now seems to be in charge of the hospitals and submitting papers to the Cabinet.
The assignment of the three state ministries with a large number of subjects under the Health Ministry has left even some of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) members wondering whether Wanniarachchi is being sidelined within the Government.
It is, however, hard to fathom whether Wanniarachchi is being sidelined in the Government, given her role as a senior SLPPer and a loyalist of Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, while her husband is the head of the SLPP Provincial Councillors Forum.
Apart from Dr. Fernandopulle’s appointment, President Rajapaksa also made another change in his Government.
The State Ministry of Prisons and Prisoner Rehabilitation that was formerly held by Dr. Fernandopulle was assigned to State Minister Lohan Ratwatte.
Ratwatte on Wednesday (2) was appointed as the State Minister of Prison Management and Prisoners Rehabilitation by President Rajapaksa.
He also holds the State Ministry of Gem and Jewellery-related Industries.
It seemed to be somewhat of a baptism by fire for Ratwatte, as his appointment came a few days after the clashes in the Mahara Prison that left 11 inmates dead and many injured, while heavy damages were caused to the infrastructure of the Mahara Prison Complex.
After being appointed as the State Minister for Prisons and Prisoner Rehabilitation, Ratwatte’s first task was to visit the Mahara Prison.
He visited the buildings that were damaged in the fracas and directed the officials to ensure the required renovation work is carried out immediately.
Ratwatte also took time to meet with the inmates and discuss their issues, after which he assured that the review meetings carried out in prisons every four years until 1998 will once again be resumed since the President had approved the recommencement of the programme.
The newly appointed Minister also addressed the Covid-19 concerns among the inmates and directed the immediate use of rapid antigen testing on Mahara inmates as well as those in other prisons in order to provide the necessary treatment to the infected while safeguarding others from contracting the virus.
He further noted that a special telephone number will be assigned at the Prisons Department to pave the way for families and relatives of inmates to inquire after the wellbeing of their loved ones behind bars.
Meanwhile, the Government has already initiated a mechanism to expedite the cases of minor offenders as well as to resolve the issue of inmates who are unable to pay their fines, in a bid to ease the congestion in prisons. The inmates will be released with the intervention of the State Ministry as well as being subjected to a monitoring mechanism by the Prisons Department.
It was reported last week that currently there are over 28,000 inmates occupying spaces in prisons islandwide, which are only allocated to accommodate about 11,000 inmates.
Sharing experiences
During the verbal exchanges on last week’s clash at the Mahara Prison, several ministers also shared their experiences while behind bars.
The first to speak on the matter was Chief Government Whip Minister Johnston Fernando. Responding to the issue of overcrowding at prisons, Fernando said the issue was nothing new and that it had been so for many years.
“It’s nothing new. It was the same when I was behind bars. There were 51 people in my cell. There was not enough space even to sleep,” he said.
Fernando further noted that when he was in the Kegalle Prison, there were 225 individuals in a space assigned for 50 people.
“Although they (Opposition) speak now, they have not even built one toilet in prisons. When I was in prison, people used to stand on one foot in the toilet. They (inmates) had swollen feet,” Fernando charged.
The next to share personal experiences was Minister Wimal Weerawansa. He said that when he was behind bars, there were 3,000 inmates in the Magazine Prison instead of 1,000 which the prison is supposed to hold.
“This congestion has been there even during the previous Government,” he charged.
Tissa meets MR
Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) MP Tissa Attanayake last week met Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa. Attanayake and Rajapaksa, despite representing opposing camps, have through the years maintained a solid friendship.
Last Wednesday (2), Attanayake had made his way to the Prime Minister’s Office at the Parliament Complex to hand a copy of his book “Untold Story” to the Prime Minister.
The novel was written by Attanayake when he was incarcerated during the tenure of the former Yahapalana Government. Attanayake was behind bars for a period of 55 days.
Interestingly, it is learnt that the novel also has a chapter on Prime Minister Rajapaksa.
During the time Attanayake was behind bars, the Prime Minister had visited him on three occasions, and when the book was presented to Rajapaksa, the duo had engaged in a discussion about that time.
After presenting the book to the Prime Minister, Attanayake spent some time with Rajapaksa reminiscing about the past.
Defence passed with majority
The vote on the Defence Ministry account was taken up last Thursday (3), following the committee stage debate on the account.
President Rajapaksa, who holds the defence portfolio, was earlier expected to attend Parliament that day but had not due to prior engagements.
Security at the Parliament Complex was beefed up in anticipation of the President’s arrival.
However, following the debate, the Tamil National People’s Front (TNPF) had sought a vote on the Defence Ministry’s account for 2021.
When the TNA had proposed a vote for the Defence Ministry account, members of the main Opposition, SJB, who were present in the Chamber, had walked out without participating in the vote.
Finally, the expenditure head of the Defence Ministry for 2021 was passed with a majority of 127 votes, with 132 votes in favour of the account and five votes against.
The five votes against the Defence Ministry account were of MPs C.V. Wigneswaran, Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam, and three members of the TNA.
Both the SJB and the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) had abstained from voting.
Basil in Parliament
[caption id="attachment_105073" align="alignleft" width="300"]
Basil Rajapaksa[/caption]
However, Basil Rajapaksa last week visited Parliament, causing quite a story among the Opposition as well as governing party politicians.
Basil had entered Parliament on Wednesday (2) evening, resulting in many legislators bombarding the parliament staff with questions on the reason for Basil’s visit to Parliament.
The parliament staff was questioned on whether Basil had arrived in Parliament to make arrangements for his re-entrance to Parliament, to which the officials had responded saying there were no such arrangements being discussed and that they had no idea as to why he had visited the House.
It was later learnt that Basil had made his way to the Prime Minister’s Office in Parliament and had attended a meeting of the SLPP parliamentary group together with Prime Minister Rajapaksa at the Parliament Complex.
Meanwhile, SLPP backbenchers continue to call on Basil to return to Parliament.
Interestingly, however, Basil seems to be in no hurry to return to Parliament. As the Head of the Presidential Task Force on Economic Revival and Poverty Eradication, Basil continues to carry out his work, which he did under the Ministry of Economic Development during the previous Rajapaksa regime.
One of Basil’s close confidants said that he would return to Parliament at the appropriate time and that he already possesses the required mandate to carry out key economic development work.
SLPP defeated thrice
Meanwhile, relations between the SLPP and Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) have once again been put to the test with the SLPP being accused of failing to honour agreements reached with the SLFP.
As a result, the SLPP saw the defeat of one of its 2021 budgets presented to a local government body last week.
The budget for 2021 presented by the SLPP in the Badulla Municipal Council was reportedly defeated for the third time.
The reason for the budget’s defeat was the decision by the SLFP, which is a coalition partner of the SLPP, to vote against the budget. The SLFP had voted against the budget, reportedly due to a disagreement over the SLPP’s alleged failure to honour an agreement reached between the two parties.
It is learnt that the SLPP and the SLFP had reached an agreement where the SLPP would hand over the chair of the local government body to the SLFP after two years.
However, the SLPP had failed to hand over the chair of the council to the SLFP, resulting in the latter deciding to vote against the budget.
This development has taken place amidst efforts by SLFP and SLPP seniors to further strengthen the alliance between the two parties. Seniors of both parties have already held several rounds of talks with their respective party organisers and district leaders to build a mechanism where the grassroots levels of both parties stand united and work towards establishing power within the local government bodies that are currently not under their hold.
However, SLFP members in the districts continue to complain about the failures in dividing funding and other benefits between members of the two parties, as well as the failure on the part of some SLPP members to honour the agreements reached between the SLPP and SLFP.
Cardinal speaks of options
Archbishop of Colombo Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith last week seemed to have run out of patience with regard to the probe on last year’s Easter Sunday attacks.
The Cardinal had said that an alternative would have to be explored in the event the Government fails to punish the culprits behind the Easter attacks.
These observations were made by the Cardinal during a recent meeting with SJB MP Kavinda Jayawardena.
The Cardinal had pointed out that the Catholic community in the country had been patiently waiting to see the outcome of the probe on the Easter Sunday attacks, and while some individuals are being held by authorities over the attacks, there is no clarity on their actual roles in the Easter Sunday carnage.
During the conversation, the Cardinal had elaborated that while the Presidential Commission of Inquiry probing Easter Sunday attacks had questioned many politicians and officials, including those in the defence establishment, most of the details discussed at the sessions were on their duties during the time of the attack. He had noted that there was a lack of clarity on whether the Commission had gathered information regarding the persons involved in the attack, their sponsors, and how the finances were raised.
News reports last week had stated that the Commission is likely to conclude its sessions by the 20th this month.
The Cardinal had called on the Government not to put the probe on the Easter Sunday attacks to the backburner.
The Catholic head had also noted that if the Government fails to address the issue of bringing to justice those responsible for the Easter Sunday attacks by giving way to the culture of politics led by various deals, the Catholic people would have to look at an alternative to ensure justice prevails.
Mahendran in the limelight
The SLPP-led Government seems to be under pressure over high-profile probes, starting from the Easter Sunday attacks to the Central Bank Treasury Bond Scam during the previous administration.
Focus has been on former Central Bank Governor Arjuna Mahendran following a question posed by the SJB to the Government recently.
[caption id="attachment_40090" align="alignleft" width="300"]
Former Central Bank Governor Arjuna Mahendran[/caption]
Upon being questioned about the progress made in the probe into the alleged Central Bank Bond Scam, Minister of Justice Ali Sabry told Parliament that there was an obstacle in proceeding with the case since Mahendran was not in the country.
When The Sunday Morning recently asked Sabry about the progress in Mahendran’s extradition from Singapore, the Minister said he was unaware of the progress made so far and that he had requested a report from the Attorney General (AG).
Last week, Sabry told Parliament that he would make a statement to the House as soon as he receives the report requested by him from the AG. The Minister added that the report was due within a few days.
However, there was no update on the AG’s report on Mahendran’s extradition at the time of going to print.
Nevertheless, it is learnt that Singaporean authorities have refused a request from the Sri Lankan Defence Ministry to extradite Mahendran to face charges in connection with the 2015 Bond Scam.
The Defence Ministry had made the request on behalf of the AG’s Department on 10 September 2019, according to an order from the Permanent High Court at Bar before which Mahendran and nine others are charged with criminal misappropriation of public property in connection with the issuance of Treasury bonds by the Central Bank in February 2015.
A social media report, however, stated that the Defence Secretary, the Director of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), and several officials of the Sri Lankan AG's Department have been informed by the Singapore AG’s Chambers that Singaporean authorities were refusing the request on the basis it could not be determined that Mahendran’s conduct, if committed in Singapore, would constitute a criminal offence in Singapore, according to the evidence presented by Sri Lanka.
Singapore prosecutors have reportedly noted that Mahendran could not have unilaterally made the decision to accept Rs. 10.058 billion worth of bids at the 27 February 2015 auction, had the Tender Board recommended a different quantum of bids.
They have further determined that under Sri Lanka’s Registered Stocks and Securities Ordinance (RSSO), the Tender Board is required to reach its own decision to present to the Central Bank Governor and that the Governor had no ability to influence that decision.
The Singaporean authorities have reportedly further raised concerns about a selective prosecution of Mahendran, since Sri Lankan authorities had failed to even question Tender Board members and officers of the Public Debt Department as to whether they were aware of the conflict of interest between Mahendran and Perpetual Treasuries Ltd., and that the Government had singled out Mahendran for criminal charges without even investigating most of the members of the Tender Board who signed onto the unanimous decision to accept Rs. 10.058 billion in bids.
The decision of the Singaporean authorities had been conveyed to the Sri Lankan Government in August this year, but was yet to be communicated to the Permanent High Court at Bar by the AG’s Department, according to the social media report.
Doval’s last-minute meeting
While the country’s political pot boils with wide-ranging issues, the TNA is gearing for the proposed constitutional reforms that are expected to take place next year.
It is in this backdrop that the TNA recently held a hurriedly organised closed-door meeting with India’s National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval during the latter’s recent visit to Sri Lanka to attend a tripartite confab in Colombo.
During the visit, Doval met with Prime Minister Rajapaksa and President Rajapaksa as well.
However, a last-minute addition to his agenda seemed to have been made last Sunday prior to his departure, where he had met with TNA Leader MP R. Sampanthan.
The meeting was brought to light by Indian media outlet, The Hindu, which stated that the meeting was held at India House, the official residence of the Indian High Commissioner in Sri Lanka, and lasted about 30 minutes.
Asked about the development, Sampanthan had confirmed that the meeting took place. “Matters pertaining to the development of Sri Lanka, and the development of the North and East were discussed,” he told The Hindu.
It was also reported that the Indian High Commission had tweeted updates of Doval’s visit, including his arrival, departure, and various meetings during his stay, but had refrained from mentioning the NSA’s meeting with Sampanthan.
Details of the discussion between Doval and Sampanthan remain unclear. However, the TNA has continuously been focusing on the Government’s move towards doing away with the 13th Amendment to the Constitution in its proposed new constitution.
In fact, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had also drawn attention to the 13th Amendment during his first virtual bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa.
“Prime Minister Modi called on the Government of Sri Lanka to address the aspirations of the Tamil people for equality, justice, peace, and respect within a united Sri Lanka, including by carrying forward the process of reconciliation with the implementation of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution,” the statement issued following the discussion noted.
There have been mixed signals from the Government with regard to the 13th Amendment and its future in the country.
Several members of the Government, including the State Minister of Local Government and Provincial Councils, have said there was no reason to continue with the provincial council system following the end of the war.
The school of thought maintained by the nationalist forces in the Government is that the provincial council system brought about by the 13th Amendment was aimed at resolving the civil war at the time and now that the war was over, there was no need to continue with the piece of legislation that was mooted by the Government of India.
Meanwhile, during a recent meeting between Fisheries Minister Douglas Devananda and US Ambassador Alaina B. Teplitz, the former had noted that enforcing the 13th Amendment would ensure the political rights of the Tamil people and help in the reconciliation process.
Devananda had further stated that there was no obstacle in enforcing the 13th Amendment to the Constitution and that there was no necessity for a two-thirds majority in Parliament or a referendum.
According to the Minister, the sole reason for the failure to address the issues faced by the Tamil-speaking people of the country was due to the misleading actions of certain Tamil politicians who have used the people to further their personal political agendas.