The Government yesterday decided to lift the curfew from 5 am to 8 pm from Monday on a daily basis in all districts other than Colombo, Gampaha, Kalutara, Puttlam, Kandy, Kegalle and Ampara districts.

However the curfew will not be lifted in the police areas of Alawathugoda, Akurana, Warakapola, Akkaraipattu. Curfew will also be lifted from 5 a.m to 8 pm on April 22 in the Colombo, Gampaha, Kalutara and Puttalam districts, excluding following police areas:

Kotahena, Grandpass, Bambalapitiya, Keselwatta, Maradana, Gothatuwa, Mulleriyawa, Wellampitiya, Mt Lavinia, Dehiwala and Kohuwala in the Colombo district; Ja ela, Kochchikade and Seeduwa in the Gamapaha district, Puttlam, Marawila and Wennappuwa in the Puttlam district and Bandaragama, Payagala, Beruwala and Aluthgama in the Kalutara district.

The President has given a nod to a number of new measures after a comprehensive study by different state agencies. On a map of Sri Lanka, the SIS has highlighted in white the Grama Sevaka divisions, which will be used as protective zones where there is no high risk. The vulnerable areas have been marked in green.

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa decided not to go to his ancestral home in Medamulana to celebrate the avurudu with his brothers. Instead he stayed back in Colombo to handle the Covid-19 crisis. He is seen here having a crisis meeting at the Presidential Secretariat with top officials.

Of the 339 Grama Sevaka divisions, 81 percent will return to gradual normalcy. There will be guidelines set out by the Presidential Task Force headed by Special Envoy Basil Rajapaksa. A set of handbooks prepared by the Task Force will insist on the use of face masks, restrictions on numbers attending weddings or funerals and social distancing. Every protective zone will have a committee headed by the Grama Sevaka of the division concerned. The Grama Sevakas will, in turn report, to the respective Divisional Secretary. There are 25 administrative districts in Sri Lanka and 14,029 Grama Sevaka divisions. The Government Agents in each district will be in overall charge and all matters will be monitored by Governors in each province. Thus, there is a likelihood of some Grama Sevaka divisions in high risk zones not affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, also having some restrictions removed. President Rajapaksa will meet District Secretaries next week to personally brief them on their responsibilities to ensure the gradual return to normalcy.

This week, President Rajapaksa has been chairing meetings with different stakeholders in the current complex situation to ensure that work in state and private sector institutions gradually returns to normal. Train and bus services will also resume next week. Banks and other establishments are also to open for business.

By yesterday, the confirmed number of Corvid-19 cases stood at 248. Seven have died so far. The afflicted include those found infected with the deadly virus during quarantine. Added to that were those medically regarded as most vulnerable due to other health complications they suffered. Thus, the fatalities in Sri Lanka were among the lowest compared to the developed world. Both in the United States and Britain, it is still at unmanageable levels. The contagious virus has afflicted nearly 710,300 and is rising with the death toll at over 37,000 in the US. In Britain, more than 108,000 have contracted the disease and more than 14,500 have died, and officials claim that it would be 54% or more when deaths in elders care homes are considered.

Former Prime Minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe, now leader of the United National Party (UNP), told New Delhi’s WION (World is One) television that “where the government made a lapse is that the equipment should have been arranged early in January. We should have got more testing kits, more face masks, more ventilators and we delayed on that.” Other than that, Wickremesinghe, who together with Maithripala Sirisena, ousted President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s regime in 2015, sounded much more like a minister in the ruling SLPP-led government. He was full of praise. The UNP has been supporting government’s anti-Covid 19 campaign.

True, the Sunday Times front-paged exclusive reports from Wuhan on the emergence of a deadly virus taking a heavy toll of lives. However, in the developed west, world leaders pooh-poohed its spread. Donald Trump, the mercurial President of the world’s most powerful nation, the United States, likened it to a flu and declared “it will go away.”  British Prime Minister Boris Johnson promised to increase the amount of testing for Covid-19, as his country saw a rapid rise in deaths. He failed, later became a victim to the deadly virus and was given intensive care. The renowned British Medical Journal (BMJ) Editor Richard Horton described the situation as “the most serious science policy failure in a generation.”

In the light of this, all credit for spearheading a countrywide drive against Covid-19 in Sri Lanka should go to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. He mobilised the medical services notwithstanding some inevitable shortcomings. He deployed the Army, Navy, Air Force, and the Police as the second line of defence. There were occasional instances of misconduct, but they pale into insignificance. Unlike in any other national calamities, these men and women were truly committed and did their own organisations proud. The President did so without more equipment, ventilators, and vast stocks of face masks.

That is not all. For the first time in decades, President Rajapaksa included the media among the essential services officially gazetted. That gave the freedom of movement to media personnel using their professional identity cards without a curfew pass. Troops and Police recognised them. In the past, media personnel also had to queue up outside Police Stations to obtain curfew passes. A few instances — the Muslim extremist massacre on Easter Sunday last year, during Tiger guerrilla attacks in Colombo during the separatist war and even the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) backed insurgency that triggered incidents in 1987. Even if media rights groups did not recognise the significance of his move through statements — it was an acknowledgement of media as the third line of defence after medical personnel and troops. It recognises that the media have a role to play to keep the people informed and should be officially facilitated to exercise their duties.

This confidence in media helped the government in no small measure to take the message to the people. It is not wrong to say that through prompt action, President Rajapaksa, thus saved hundreds if not thousands of lives. He also abandoned his customary trip to Medamulana, the Rajapaksa ancestral home, to be on hand with brother Mahinda and other family members for avurudu. He was hands on and continued operating from the Presidential Secretariat receiving feedbacks and giving instructions.

Of course, some in the social media, did not see it that way. Their campaign against President Rajapaksa degenerated into to a malicious personal onslaught. Locally, at least 17 of them have been taken into custody for peddling disinformation. He was not alone. Even those who placed matters on record after verifying facts to one’s ability in the national media became targets too. I am among those who received hate e-mail and abuse,  wildly obscene, for what they called “supporting Gotabaya.” They seem to forget that he is no longer a government official – Secretary to the Ministry of Defence.

He has been elected as President of Sri Lanka by a majority of 1.3 million votes against his nearest rival, Sajith Premadasa, who then contested from the UNP. He polled 6,924,255 votes whilst Premadasa received 5,564,239 votes. He is thus a leader with an unquestionable and strong public mandate. The fact sems lost on some short-sighted lackeys, particularly those in opposition, to whom innate hatred or malice is all that matters. I am reminded of the words of Mark Twain who said, “It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt.”

During the month-long 24-hour curfew, de-escalating measures themselves are an arduous task. Present security measures will be in force to ensure these guidelines, each earmarked for a particular sector. For example, the plantation sector will be required to follow a different set of guidelines from factory workers.

Economic and constitutional challenges

President Rajapaksa’s biggest challenge, particularly after gradually scaling down the anti-Covid-19 campaign, is on the economic front. Many a blueprint is now under study. Some may be publicised in the coming week. The nett result would be for Sri Lankans to tighten their belts due to severe import restrictions. On top of that subsidised prices have also been withdrawn. Dhal will now cost Rs 134 a kilo and canned fish Rs 192.

Another equally big challenge is the storm cloud gathering over an impending constitutional crisis. This is over the parliamentary elections. Intense behind-the-scenes activity this week showed that major opposition political parties are veering towards a call for a delay. “With a coronavirus pandemic amidst us, this is a time when we cannot hold free and fair elections,” Ranjith Madduma Bandara, General Secretary of the Samagi Jana Balavegaya (SJB) told the Sunday Times. He said it would not be possible to conduct an election campaign without any ‘let or hindrance.’

His remarks came after SJB leader Sajith Premadasa failed in his attempt to summon a party leader’s meeting and a news conference. He wrote to acting Police Chief, Chandana Wickremeratne, seeking permission to hold these two events but the request was rejected due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Thereafter, in a National New Year message, Premadasa said, “We should question whether we ought to give priority to parliamentary democracy or saving people’s lives.” He said holding an election at this time risks spreading the coronavirus widely. “The entire state apparatus, led by health authorities and the security forces, have so far been able to keep the number of infections controlled and deaths at a minimum.

Holding an election, he said, risked betraying all these victories. “In this context, we, who value parliamentary democracy and elections, and who do not shy away from facing elections, emphasise that the focus at this stage should be on saving people’s lives and not put them at risk by holding an election. This will put both the voting public and elections officials in harm’s way,” he pointed out and added “we condemn attempts to hold election based on political agendas disregarding the threat to people’s lives.”

Allegations against Premadasa

This week Premadasa was giving his own take to his alliance colleagues over the conversation with President Gotabaya Rajapaksa where he was ticked off in strong words. He claimed, not correctly though, that he had no telephone call from President Rajapaksa.” Asked why he did not contradict such reports by an SJB leader, Premadasa replied “I have decided to ignore them.” At the same time, he told colleagues, he was not “involved in any wrongdoing” and will continue to speak the “truth.” In a telephone conversation, President Rajapaksa, took exception to Premadasa referring to him as a ‘dictator.’ He pointed out that there were serious allegations against Premadasa — denied by the SJB leader — on the misuse of moneys from the Central Cultural Fund which then came under him. He had neither consulted the Attorney General nor told the Police to investigate those claims. However, Prime Minister, Mahinda Rajapaksa did appoint a committee to probe the matter. “After the presidential election, you cried when you telephoned me. You said you will retire from politics. If I act, don’t come crying to me again,” President Rajapaksa has said, according to a source familiar with the conversation.

After the Police Chief’s refusal, Madduma Bandara wrote to Election Commission Chairman Mahinda Deshapriya. Here is the full text of the letter:

“It is no secret that those who value democracy read with interest, your letter to the President noting that an election cannot be held in the current volatile and dangerous environment, thus requesting him to seek an opinion from the Supreme Court.

“I would like to state that we also endorse your view regarding an election at this time. We also firmly believe that a free and fair election is not possible at this time. The danger of the Corona outbreak is still present, with 15 confirmed cases being reported yesterday (14). At the time of writing, the entire Western province and several other districts remain under an indefinite curfew.

“A large number of government officials will be required to hold the election and more will be needed for the purpose of counting ballots and issuing results. Holding an election at this time puts their lives at risk as well. On the other hand, many people are of the view that the vast sums of money that will be spent on an election should go towards helping the people who have been affected by the outbreak.

“Moreover, no candidate will be able to campaign for the election. It is laughable to contemplate holding an election in a situation where one cannot do anything related to an election process. Taking these into consideration, it is our view that your decision on the election and the letter sent to the President are correct.

“However, the President’s Secretary has replied to your letter asking you to take measures to hold the election before June 2. This is impossible given the current situation and we emphasise that an election cannot be held based on the requirement of one party. We further urge you to call a meeting of leaders and secretaries of all political parties to discuss this situation.”

The SJB’s position was endorsed by Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith, Archbishop of Colombo, during a news conference called to brief the media on the cancellation of events on the first anniversary of the Easter Sunday massacres. He said it would be wise to conduct elections after the Covid-19 pandemic was brought under full control.

Though both the UNP and the JVP are also in favour of delaying the parliamentary elections, they have not officially declared their positions. In a new development, former Speaker Karu Jayasuriya is making a bid to bring the leaders of the UNP and SJB together since they would take common position on the parliamentary elections. Whether he would succeed, with acrimony between the two reaching a peak, remains a critical question. However, Jayasuriya has also made similar peace efforts in the past. On Thursday (April 23) Jayasuriya will preside over a meeting of the Constitutional Council in his capacity as chairman.

Yesterday, the Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa said in a statement that “the Elections Commission is mandatorily required to fix another day for the poll. They have no power to postpone the poll without fixing another date. Such mandatory legal requirements cannot be ignored on the basis of speculation as to what may or may not happen weeks and months into the future. The Elections Commission should first fulfill its duties under Section 24(3) and thereafter take up for discussion any outstanding issues” Details appear elsewhere.

Even before the postponement of parliamentary polls by the Election Commission, it had not gone through a legal process. This is the gazetting of the names of those who have handed in nominations and their official numbers. These numbers are necessary for voters to cast preference votes. Thus, candidates from different parties were unable to engage in campaigns even in a smaller way due to this factor.

Basil Rajapaksa, General Secretary of the ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Nidhas Sandanaya, told the Sunday Times, “I do not want to comment on the parliamentary elections. That is a matter for the Election Commission. However, I am surprised by the position taken by some parties which had earlier introduced legislation to put off Provincial Council elections. They also periodically put off local government elections. They know we have ensured almost near normalcy. Look at South Korea. They held elections there and the turn out despite their being affected badly by the Covid-19 pandemic was more than their previous poll.”

Basil Rajapaksa recently told Election Commission Chairman Deshapriya to avoid resorting to any action that “would institutionalise the present stalemate” and then “blame us for the situation.” In other words, the President’s Special Envoy is making clear that an indefinite delay in the conduct of a parliamentary election would mean the indefinite continuance of the Presidency without an elected government. This means no Parliament and priority matters like amendments to the constitution will be difficult. In this setting, some Buddhist prelates have even said that President Rajapaksa should continue in office without worrying about elections.

There was no response from Chairman Deshapriya over these developments. Calls and messages to him went unanswered. Together with his two colleague members, he will meet Health officials, Police and Returning Officers tomorrow to ascertain their views on the current situation of the Covid-19 pandemic in Sri Lanka. This is a prelude to the announcement of a date for parliamentary elections. There were unconfirmed reports he would officially announce that May 23 will be the day for parliamentary polls. This will allow the new Parliament to convene before the constitutionally required deadline of June 2. This is after the nominations concluded on March 18.

One of the issues that had dogged the Election Commission in the conduct of the parliamentary elections is the unpreparedness of state sector officials of different tiers. The Covid-19 pandemic has become a deterrent and most are avoiding exposure. This is learnt to be one of the key contributory factors that compelled the Commission to put off the polls. Some senior bureaucrats lobbied those both in government and in the opposition towards this. In the light of this, it will be a tough task for the Commission to not only enlist the officers but also to put them through a stint of training.

Rsihad’s call to Basil

Amidst these developments, Basil Rajapaksa received a telephone call from former Minister Rishad Bathiudeen, now a key player in the SJB, this week. He pleaded for help to have his brother Riyad Bathiuddin, who has been arrested by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), released from custody. He also sought to prevent his own arrest if indeed there were plans to do so. Rajapaksa, according to one of his aides, had explained that that the investigations were carried out by the CID which came under the purview of the President. In this instance, seven different CID teams had been engaged. He regretted his inability to interfere in the investigative process or on arrests being made.

According to sources close to the presidency, President Rajapaksa is closely monitoring some of the most important cases. The Easter Sunday attack last year was one of them. Others, these sources said, included the Central Bank bond scam and added that he was committed to punish those involved.

According to CID sources, Riyad Bathiudeen had been arrested for allegedly having links with Muslim extremists responsible for the April 21 Easter Sunday attacks that left at least 268 men, women, and children dead. Next Tuesday marks the first anniversary of the dastardly incidents. More key arrests are to follow, these sources said, adding that he was a close associate of an extremist who died. CID sources said that Riyad Bathiudeen had telephone conversations with the bomber before the incident. It is, however, not clear whether such calls were made earlier or days before the attack. The arrest comes in the wake of concerns at the highest levels over a possible strongly worded statement that was to come from the Catholic Church. This was to highlight the fact that little or nothing has been done though it is one year. This seems to have been obviated the move. Also arrested in this connection is Hejaaz Hisbullah, Attorney-at-law. CID sources alleged that he had links with two other Muslim extremists. However, no details were available.

Bar Association of Sri Lanka President, Kalinga Indatissa, wrote to acting Police Chief Chandana Wickremeratne on the arrest of this lawyer. He said,

“According to the information that we have received, the reasons for his arrest have not been made known up to now. We have been informed that the arrest is based on certain functions attended to by Mr. Hisbullah in his professional capacity as a member of the Bar.

“While the BASL has no intention of disturbing any pending investigation that is being conducted lawfully by the Authorities, naturally, the BASL is concerned about the wellbeing of Mr. Hisbullah. We would be extremely grateful if you could direct the investigating officers to ensure:

“a. That the professional rights of Mr. Hisbullah are given due consideration,

 “b. That the BASL is informed of the reasons and the basis of his arrest.”

Rishad Bathiudeen was also questioned by the CID for four hours on matters relating to land transactions. Investigations into him began after Rizwi Jowharsha, an attorney-at-law, lodged complaints with the CID and the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption.

Former Minister Bathiudeen, leader of the All Ceylon Makkal Congress, also issued a statement. He said, “My brother Riyad Bathiudeen was arrested by the Criminal Investigation Department while he was at his house in Puttalam on April 14, 2020 stating that he had connection with a suicide bomber with respect to Easter Sunday Attacks. Until now, none of his family members or his lawyer has been allowed to speak to him.

“Although around seven persons were arrested along with him, only his name stating that he was my brother was published in all medias (sic) with many false allegations. I affirm that neither me nor any of my family members are involved with these terrorist attacks. Also, I wish to state that we were and will always be against terrorism since we also belong to a community that were forcibly evicted by the LTTE…”

Bathiudeen also figured in television clips on the social media and WhatsApp claiming he had done no wrong. He displayed a file containing the findings of the Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) and claimed, “Even they had cleared me.”

He was citing a letter sent to the PSC by acting Police Chief Wickremeratne who claimed there was no evidence against him. However, the PSC itself came in for strong public criticism on the grounds that it was designed to exculpate some persons backing the former government. Their findings were also at variance with revelations that came to light both from a Commission of Inquiry as well as those from the CID.

SJB statement

Last week’s reference in these columns about President Rajapaksa’s decision to exclude some members when a delegation from the Samagi Jana Balavegaya (SJB) met him has drawn an angry response from the alliance. Here is the full text of a statement General Secretary, Ranjith Madduma Bandara, issued:

“There has (sic) been several misleading reports by various state media institutions about the above-mentioned discussion and we believe that the truth about the discussions should be revealed.

“The political party leaders in the Samagi Jana Balawegaya unanimously decided that a discussion should be held with the President about the situation arising from the outbreak of the coronavirus and accordingly the President’s office allocated April 6 as the date for the meeting.

“The party leaders decided that it was sufficient for Mr Sajith Premadasa as the leader of the party and me as General Secretary of the party attend the meeting.

“One of the myths which has been socialized is that those currently on bail were not given permission to attend the meeting.  The bankrupt political attempt is baseless and hilarious.

“As we reject it as a bankrupt attempt and if those on bail could not attend that meeting, we should mention that a couple of private staff members of the President, the President’s secretary and several others, the Prime Minister and a large number in the cabinet  are those who have faced legal cases or been released on bail.

“The Samagi Jana Balawegaya wishes to condemn attempts to take falsehoods and baseless statements to society and calls upon (them) to act in a civilized manner.” Far from facts becoming a myth or a fallacy when it is embarrassingly hurtful, the references made in the Sunday Times (Political Commentary), which reported it first, was factually accurate. President Rajapaksa did insist on the exclusion of some SJB members who were to meet him. That is the bold truth though the statement is full of confusing, contradictory, and irrelevant verbiage to bury the facts. At first, the statement denies three SJB members were excluded, but later heaps blame on government leaders and concedes that it did take place. Contradictions are all too common with the SJB. Even their leader Sajith Premadasa or General Secretary Madduma Bandara is no exception. To them, anything perceived bad news never happened.

As President Rajapaksa takes the long route to restore normalcy in the coming week, a constitutional conundrum is staring in the face of Sri Lankans. If there are no parliamentary elections, there will be no Parliament and no new reforms through legislative changes promised by the SLPP-led government. On the other hand, the opposition parties now have a ready-made campaign to delay the polls, which no doubt, will set the clock back. A much greater responsibility lies in the Election Commission. An entire nation awaits that.