It is no secret that the majority of the people in the country have a low opinion about the conduct of most parliamentarians. The arrest last week of two MPs, one for his alleged involvement in a killing of a political opponent and the other for the abduction of a child of a supporter of a political opponent, will do little to change this image of elected representatives in the eyes of the people.
In fact the timing of the arrest will not do much to improve the image of the Police Department too which conveniently allowed a lapse of nearly a month since the crimes were committed to take into custody the two MPs and produce them in courts, obviously to avoid a politically sensitive time leading up to the Western Provincial Council election.
The two MPs involved are former JVP and now National Freedom Front (NFF)/ Wimal Weerwansa faction’s Kalutara district MP Piyasiri Wijenaike and UPFA Gampaha district MP Sarana Gunawardena, both remanded within days of each other. MP Wijenaike was remanded for his alleged involvement in the killing of a JVP party worker Nandana Balage who was shot dead in the lead up to the WPC polls while MP Gunawardena was remanded for his alleged role in the abduction of the child of a supporter of one of his political opponents in the UPFA in the Gampaha district.
While they plead their innocence before the judiciary, covered by Parliamentary powers and privileges, both men are entitled to attend parliament sittings and while MP Gunawardena did not show up during sittings last week, the NFF MP did attend sessions only to have several government MPs shake hands with him and greet him.
Other than the arrests, there were additional things that seem to have been put on hold by the government in the lead up to the polls, mainly price increases. The price control placed by Minister of Consumer Affairs Bandula Gunawardena on essential items such as lentils and sugar was removed soon after the election while the price of domestic gas too went up. Citing the price increase, the UNP introduced an adjournment motion on the state of the country’s economy. The Party’s Kegalle district parliamentarian Kabeer Hasheem said that the UNP warnings that price controls would only remain till the election has been proven correct by the actions of the government after the polls and accused the government of unreasonably taxing the consumers. He quoted legendary British Prime Minister Winston Churchill to illustrate what Minister Gunawardena was attempting to do. “I contend that for a nation to tax itself into prosperity is like a man standing in a bucket and trying to lift himself up by the handle.”
JVP Colombo district parliamentarian Sunil Handunnetti used statistics to illustrate the difficult times ahead for the country’s economy. He said the country’s total debt now stood at Rs. 3,400 billion accumulated over the past few years and the government needed to find Rs. 417 billion by next year to pay off the due installments.
He also cast aspersions on whether the government was putting to proper use the taxes collected from the people. “The government has recently raised the Nation Building Tax from one to three per cent, but it is doubtful if the monies collected were directed towards the welfare of the security forces personnel and rebuilding the country, as is the purpose of this tax,” he said.
Flushed with the most recent election victory as well as the successes in the battlefront against the LTTE, government members were in no mood to take too much of opposition criticism. Minister Bandula Gunawardena said instead of putting forward valid arguments about the economy, the opposition was attempting to score political points by launching personal attacks on him.
The plight of civilians living in welfare camps as well as those still trapped in areas controlled by the LTTE was raised by several Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarians with Jaffna district MP N . Sri Kantha asking the government to announce a ceasefire to save the trapped civilians and allow more access to those in welfare camps.
“When we speak on behalf of the Tamil civilians, we are branded as LTTE supporters. It is some in this same government who sought the support of the LTTE prior to the last presidential election and even addressed them as “machang,” he said.
Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage who had returned after a visit to welfare camps in Chettikulam said one had to only speak to the civilians there to understand the atrocities committed by the LTTE against the people. “I invite the TNA MPs also to visit these camps and hear for themselves what these people had to undergo. Otherwise you will not be able to walk even on the streets of Wellawatta, one of these days, if you continue to speak on behalf of the LTTE,” he said.
Parliament also debated the attack on the Sri Lanka Embassy in Oslo with MP Wimal Weerawansa introducing an adjournment motion to condemn the attack. He used the debate to urge fellow legislators to get together to voice their opposition to external forces that are attempting to interfere in the internal affairs of the country. “All these attempts are being made to save LTTE leader Prabhakaran so that they can keep him alive and use him to wage a proxy war here.
They have no concern for civilians,” he said.
The UNP too condemned the attack on the Embassy with MP Lakshman Kiriella saying Norwegian authorities must provide adequate protection to the mission and punish the culprits behind the attack. However, he added, the contribution made by the international community in the fight against terrorism must not be forgotten. “Many countries banned the LTTE while others froze the funds of the TRO and these acts helped the country in its fight against terrorism. We must appreciate these measures,” he said.
Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama said the Norwegian authorities have informed that 12 persons have been arrested in connection with the Embassy attack and the government expects them to be dealt with under the law.. “The International Community has been supportive of our fight against terrorism and we are thankful for that,” he said. |
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