Lethargic bureaucrats get presidential awakening knock

By Ifham Nizam

President Gotabaya Rajapksa yesterday ordered action against some senior state officials who didn’t co-operate with the ministers in charge or delayed their scheduled and routine work without a valid reason.

President Rajapaksa told senior ministers yesterday that even if a ministry secretary happened to be the official the minister concerned was not happy, action had to be taken against him or her.

The President had also said that it was true that he had appointed them but discipline had to be maintained.

President Rajapaksa told Environment Minister Mahinda Amaraweera yesterday to go all out to implement all projects and ventures without delay and he would do his utmost to find required funding and clearing all stumbling blocks.

Ways and means of strengthening local industries and looking for alternatives to plastic and polythene products were discussed.

The President said Governors and District Secretaries should personally intervene to maintain essential services. and move forward as a country.

President Rajapaksa directed the Governors and District Secretaries to extend their fullest support to enable factories to continue operations and keep the government’s development drive on track.