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UPFA PS members to face disciplinary action for ‘conduct unbecoming’
The UPFA is to soon commence an inquiry into a brawl this week between two members at the Bentota Pradeshiya Sabha (PS) meeting, Senior UPFA Minister A. H. M. Fowzie said.
He said a panel would be appointed to look into the incident and if found guilty the members would face disciplinary action.
The incident was one among a series of cases of indiscipline among local council members reported during the past few weeks.
Bentota PS Chairman Gayan Sirimanne and Deputy Chairman Ranjan Srilal Wickremasinghe were left bloodied last Monday (28) when a heated argument led to fisticuffs. The Deputy Chairman is receiving treatment at the Nagoda hospital.
“That morning I was sitting with other members at the PS Finance Committee meeting. The Chairman usually doesn’t attend these meetings, but that day he stormed into the room accusing me of scolding his golayas,” the Deputy Chairman said.
He told the Sunday Times that he was discussing the provision of street lights to the area, as the residents are getting ready for the katina pinkama. Wickremasinghe explained that the Chairman has given the service to certain areas leaving out most of the others.
Bentota PS Chairman Gayan Sirimanne receiving treatment
“I was telling the others present about the work of this imbecile. You see, he only provides lights to his supporters, while leaving others in the dark. The katina pinkama is very important to the people in my area, and I was saying that everyone should be served equitably,” he added.
It was when this conversation was going on that the Chairman entered the room. “He told me that the work in the PS should be done according to the way he wants, and I asked him if it was his mother’s property. Furious that I dragged his mother into the argument, he tried to attack me,” Mr. Wickremasinghe said.
He said that, on impulse, to avoid being attacked, he held the Chairman close. “That is how you avoid being attacked, right? However, when his guards saw this, thinking that I was assaulting him, they rushed into the room with weapons. Seeing them coming, I became nervous and tried to break free. That is when the Chairman hit me repeatedly till I was bloodied,” he said, adding that a tooth came loose as a result. He also said that the other members just watched as they were also helpless.
After the Chairman left, he had called a three-wheeler driver known to him and was taken to Bentota hospital in the man’s vehicle and from there was transferred to Nagoda hospital.
Mr. Wickremasinghe said that the Chairman was appointed to the position through political influence and added that the Chairman had issues with other members of the PS as well.
However, the Chairman had a different story to tell. Commenting on the incident, Mr. Sirimanne said that the Deputy Chairman was accusing other PS members when he attended the Treasury Committee meeting. He said that, when he overheard the Deputy Chairman bad mouthing other members, he decided to put a stop to it.
“The Deputy Chairman has an attitude problem. He has been in the PS for a long time. I’m new and young. He is jealous that I’m in a higher position than him,” Mr. Sirimanne said.
“As the Deputy Chairman uses bad language all the time, it has become a problem now,” he said. He said that he asked Mr. Wickremasinghe why he uses bad language, saying that it was not correct for a person in such a position to do so. He added that, even though Mr. Wickremasinghe seems to have many problems to be sorted out, he failed to seek my help.
“I’m the head of this Sabha, and even though they are older than me they have to respect me. However, he started disrespecting me and said bad things about my mother. He even started to hit me.
To avoid being attacked, I pushed him away from me. He went off balance and fell. I think he broke his tooth when he hit a desk or some other object as he fell,” he said.
Regarding the street lights, he said that the Deputy Chairman wanted street lights in his area only. “He was saying that, even though others didn’t get any, he needed them around his house and the temple that he went to. There is a procedure for all this. One cannot do as one wishes, he added.
He further said that other members of the PS, including the opposition members, are on good terms with him. “We are a species that come from monkeys. Ones who have still not developed into humans, show a bit of monkey behaviour,” he added.
Both parties have made complaints to the Nagoda and Bentota police, but no arrests have been made with regard to the incident. Bentota police are currently investigating the matter.
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