The Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP)-led National People’s Power (NPP) Government is facing its first ‘credibility’ crisis with the academic credentials of two officials being questioned. With such incidents, the honeymoon period of the new Government will gradually fade away next year, as the new crop of lawmakers rush through a steep learning curve on what it means to be in the driving seat of a nation.   

Yesterday (10), the Government was forced to respond to growing criticism about alleged fake educational qualifications of the Speaker of the Parliament Asoka Ranwala, Cabinet Spokesperson, Minister Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa stating that Ranwala will soon make a ‘responsible’ statement regarding the recent controversies related to his doctorate. The Cabinet Spokesperson told media organisations that the Government will arrive at a decision regarding the matter after the Speaker reports on his qualifications to the relevant authorities. “I will make a statement on what decision the Government will take if the claims are true as well as if the claims are false,” Jayatissa added.  

The new Speaker has drawn a spotlight onto himself during the few days he has held the office for various changes in traditions, and some rookie errors which many disregarded when made by a first time Member of Parliament. However, the allegations levelled against the Speaker and his academic credentials are serious.  Uncorroborated reports have circulated on social media over the doctorate of Speaker Ashoka Ranwala recently, and the controversy has escalated, with the Sri Lanka Parliament website recently removing the title ‘Dr.’ from his profile in the Members’ directory. With pressure mounting on both the Speaker and the NPP, Former Chairperson of the Election Commission Mahinda Deshapriya was among one of the first to fire a salvo questioning the Speaker to prove that he has a university degree. Deshapriya charged that if the Speaker fails to do so, he should resign, or the Government must remove him from his post. 

However, the Speaker has chosen to ignore the criticisms and has not responded as of yet. With another NPP Parliamentarian, a recently appointed deputy minister also being criticised for touting educational qualification, which he is alleged not to have achieved. The JVP and its new avatar the NPP excelled at branding its political opponents based on their lack of academic credentials while the party was in opposition. They did not miss an opportunity to question their opponents academic and professional qualifications and even ridiculed some of them. With the spotlight now on the Government the JVP-NPP is getting a taste of its own medicine. The Opposition has now received some ammunition to attack the Government’s credibility. As such, it is unlikely that we will see this matter laid to rest soon, as it morphs into the first public campaign against the NPP Government. It is prudent for the Government and the Speaker to offer clarity on these allegations and do so soon before the credibility of the entire Government becomes a point of question. This is important as the NPP has long bull horned their ‘commitment to transparency, accountability’ and ‘respect of the people’s right to information’. Without quick action, the silence on this issue may spell serious trouble for the new Government.

While it is legally no barrier for any Sri Lanka to run for Parliament with no benchmarks set for educational qualification, the fact that parties like the NPP and the SLPP’s infamous ‘Viyathmaga’ groups both touted their educational qualifications as sound reasoning for the public to vote in ‘professionals’ to Parliament to help formulate better policies, points to the public being misled by political parties who, if the allegations are proven correct, allowed persons with fake credentials to run for office. As such, it is incumbent on the Government to address this matter quickly and fairly to ensure public faith in the Parliament is not eroded. Further, any Government that campaigned on slogans of transparency and better accountability must show so in practice, or lose their credibility.