President under pressure to walk the talk after three years in office

BY GAGANI WEERAKOON-2018-01-28

They says this is not a national election that would change Governments and is the chance to elect competent groups of people that could ensure you are living in a developed, resourceful, healthy, peaceful, clear of all kinds of pollution and safe environment. Yet, with just a fortnight to go for the Local Government Elections to be held on 10 February 2017, the election campaign by all main political parties has set the atmosphere of a General Election or of a Presidential Election, with the Head of State going for almost every SLFP/UPFA rally. President Maithripala Sirisena was seen even at election rallies that were held at Technical College Junction and Colombo Central, giving the aura of an intense political battle between political stalwarts.

All party leaders including President Sirisena, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, former President Mahinda Rajapaksa and JVP leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake are engaged in giving either new promises or renewing their old promises which have not been kept after lapsing so many years in power. All these talks involved matters of national importance and finding fault with each other. It appears like everyone is in a race to prove that he is a better crook than the other. They discuss everything other than how each candidate would address burning issues in that particular area. While, each voter is sensible enough to understand that all these cat-fights displayed before the public by rulers will come to an end by 11 February, it would be normal for anyone to be confused about who actually is speaking the truth after listening to four different versions of the same incident.
President Sirisena meanwhile, promised to launch a national anti-corruption movement after 10 February, especially against white collar and VVIP criminals. If implemented it will in fact be re-launching a programme that he promised three years ago yet, failed to adhere to.

Even though it is unclear whether they are genuine remarks, President Sirisena has been targeting his coalition partner UNP and PM Wickremesinghe directly and indirectly at almost every public rally he addressed in the recent past, fuelling speculations that the honeymoon between UNP and the SLFP may come to an end. All did not seem to be ok between the President and the UNP ever since the establishment of Presidential Commission of Inquiry to investigate the Treasury bonds scam that was alleged to have key UNPers involved in it. Things turned from bad to worse with the final report of the Bond Commission being made public as UNP members started openly criticizing the President to the extent that they even called him a 'pickpocket president'.

After much drama, two days were allocated for the debate on both Bond Commission and PRECIFAC reports. However, President Sirisena renewed his mission by challenging both UNP and SLPP to hold the debate before LG Polls - a desperate and final attempt by the SLFP Leader as many view it, to stop the SLFP from undergoing an embarrassing defeat.

He said, it is the belief of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) that two or three days should be set aside, by Parliament to debate the reports of the Presidential Commission of Inquiry (PCoI), which investigated the issuance of Treasury Bonds and the PCoI probing into Serious Acts of Fraud, Corruption and Abuse of Power, State Resources and Privileges, prior to the Local Government (LG) Elections, which are to be conducted on 10 February.

Speaking to the media in Colombo on Friday (26), he said the Party Leaders, at their meeting, had decided to postpone a debate on the reports, but that the SLFP still wants it as "the country will get a good idea of what is in the reports if there is a debate."

He charged that an 'alliance of corrupt Very Important Persons' has been formed and that they would prevent the investigations into the offences listed in these reports.

He said: "As soon as the PCoI report on the Treasury bonds issue was sent to me, there were demands from certain political parties for me to release its contents."

"I had intended to conduct a deep study of the issue before taking any action or making a statement, but because of the insistent demands, I consulted lawyers and the President's Secretary and made the statement to the nation," he added.

"This is the first time in my life that I made a statement of that nature, not on my own but on the advice of others."

He also assured everybody that there is nothing missing in the report.

"The papers that were collected, in order to create this report, can fill two large trucks and in order to file charges, many of these documents will have to be examined. A level of secrecy has to be maintained so that the cases can be filed," he went on to say.

He also pointed out after he sent the two reports to Parliament, those who were clamouring for them to be released 'have strangely fallen silent.'

"It was a coincidence that both reports came within days of each other. I think if only one of them had come out, then those affected on the other side would have demanded a debate."

Elsewhere, Joint Opposition (JO) Parliamentary Group Leader Dinesh Gunawardena said despite the JO and the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) making repeated requests to hold the debate, related to the report compiled by the PCol into the Central Bank bonds scam, in the Parliament before 10 February at the last party leaders meeting, those in the Government ranks had rejected such requests. JVP Parliamentarian Vijitha Herath has requested the Speaker to facilitate the holding of the debate before 10 February on the report compiled by the PCol, which probed the CB Bonds scam, having considered the challenge issued to political parties recently by the President.

Gunawardena said that hence it should be the Government that should take the rap for failing to hold the debate before the staging of the 2018 LG Poll on 10 February.

The Parliamentarian challenged the President, the Prime Minister and the Speaker to facilitate the holding of the proposed debate before 10 February, rather than on the scheduled dates of 20 and 21 February.

Meanwhile, Leader of the House, Minister Lakshman Kiriella said that the decision taken to debate the PCol report, on the Central Bank Bonds scandal on 20 and 21 February had been taken with the full consent of all political parties represented in the Parliament and that even those from the United National Party and the SLFP too had agreed to hold the debate after the completion of the 2018 LG Poll on 10 February.

He added that when the decision had been taken to hold the debate in late February, senior SLFP Ministers such as Nimal Siripala de Silva and Mahinda Samarasinghe had also been among those who had attended the Party Leaders meeting.

While the Bond Commission report has allegedly caused much damage to the UNP, the Presidential Commission of Inquiry to investigate and inquire into Serious Acts of Fraud, Corruption and Abuse of Power, State Resources and Privileges (PRECIFAC) would eventually cause much damage to the Rajapaksa family.

The Commission which has held former President Mahinda Rajapaksa and former Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa responsible for causing colossal losses to the Government through the abuse of power, has given a detailed account of how former Minister of Economic Development Basil Rajapaksa allegedly misused Gama Neguma project money.

The PRECIFAC, in its final report, observed that even though a Cabinet Minister is entitled to three vehicles, former Minister Basil Rajapaksa's fleet had eight State vehicles worth around Rs 612 million and another six vehicles of which the value has not been estimated. These included bulletproof vehicles too.

In addition, Basil Rajapaksa, deviating from accepted norms, has had 20 Sailors and 72 Army officers in his security detail as at 1 January, 2015. According to the report, Basil Rajapaksa has had a security detail of 64 Sailors and 84 Army officers from 10 January 2010 to 10 January 2015 by paying State allowances and Very Important Persons security allowances at a cost of Rs 264,370,800 to State coffers.

The Commission report, which points out that the findings should be referred to the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption and to the Attorney General for further legal action, also noted that Basil Rajapaksa and his officials had made arrangements to pay Rs 155.4 million to the Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) from the capital funds of the Gama Neguma project.

While noting that individuals, including Parliamentarians Dayasiri Jayasekara, Wimal Weerawansa, Namal Rajapaksa and one of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa's sons, Yoshitha Rajapaksa owed millions of rupees to Heli Tours - the commercial domestic air service by the SLAF - they had in fact taken steps to pay that amount to the SLAF while the investigations were continuing. The Commission recommended another investigation to ascertain from where these individuals had found such large sums to pay off the said amounts.

Also, the Commission noted that the monies owed by Namal Rajapaksa and Yoshitha Rajapaksa were in fact paid by an Army Corporal on behalf of the President's Office, and therefore it needs to be investigated further as to how a Corporal was able to pay off an amount of over Rs 26 million.
Among the controversial issues considered by the PRECIFAC are the following:

The misuse of State media to publish and broadcast election campaign messages of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

The loss caused to the State by using 'Rakna Arakshaka Lanka' security company employees for former President Mahinda Rajapaksa's election campaign.

The case of the former Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa being questioned on the investigation into handing over Rakna Arakshaka Lanka weaponry to the Avant Garde Security Services.

Statements recorded from individuals including prominent artistes over allegations of fraud and corruption in organizing the opening ceremony of the Hambantota Port.

Basil Rajapaksa being questioned over the misuse of State-owned helicopters during the Presidential Election campaign.