External Affairs Minister Ravi K’s “Internal Affair”

By Nagananda Kodituwakku –MAY 23, 2017

Nagananda Kodituwakku

Any person holding a public office, if found to have abused it for improper purposes violating the law, particularly the bribery or corruption, the law demands such persons to be dismissed from the public office and people want such people be named and shame in public.

Before Ravi Karunanayake was appointed to the office of the Finance Minister, the PM, Ranil Wickremesinghe had the prior knowledge that Ravi K was an accused charged before the High Court (HC/4648/2009) of Colombo by Rajapaksa Administration in a serious foreign exchange fraud involving 3 million US Dollars. The man who sent that money, Raj Rajarathnam, is already serving 11-year jail term in the US.

The total breakdown of law in this country is such that regarding this factor Ravi K was made the Finance Minister by Yahapalana Administration, and he was subsequently discharged from the case, due to an error in the indictment as claimed by the defense lawyer which did not prejudice the rights of the accused Ravi K. However, in the judgment delivered on 18th May 2015 the legal right of the Attorney General has been expressly secured by the Court to charge Ravi K on an amended indictment. However, after he was discharged Ravi K went on the town, deceiving the people that he was exonerated from all charges, which is a diabolical lie.

Then it became the statutory duty of Attorney General, Yuwanjana Wijeyathilake to perform the office as required by law, which has not been done to date. Herein it is important to mention that another former Minister of the previous regime Basil Rajapaksa was charged with an amended indictment under similar circumstances.

The Attorney General Yuwanjana Wijeyathilake went on retirement without complying with the Court ruling. Therefore on 09th March 2017 he was charged with corruption and abuse of office to confer a favour to a senior Cabinet Member of a Yahapalana Administration and enabling it to rob the public finance as in the case of Bond Scam. And in the public interest now the incumbent Attorney General Jayantha Jayasuriya has also been served with a notice on 14th March 2017 to perform the public office he holds on trust, urging him to act as required by law against Ravi K. In these circumstances it is beyond belief as to how such a person has been given one of the most important Cabinet portfolios, the Foreign Minister.

This simply demonstrates the total breakdown of Rule of Law in this country, which is an insult to the intelligence of the people, inflicted by those who are appointed or elected to the public offices in the Legislature and in the Executive.

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