News
SJB vows to move SC over House dispute
By Saman Indrajith
The main Opposition SJB yesterday said it would move the Supreme Court seeking justice over an alleged attack on its MP Manusha Nanayakkara in the House on Friday if the Speaker delayed taking action against the attackers. Addressing the media at the Opposition Leader’s office in Colombo, Chief Opposition Whip and Kandy District SJB MP Lakshman Kiriella said the Speaker was controlled by the government. “We attended a special party leaders’ meeting on Monday and were shocked to observe that the Speaker did not even utter a single word about the assault on MP Nanayakkara. According to him, it is the duty of the Chief Whips of the Government and the Opposition to maintain order in Parliament.”
Kiriella said that as per the British parliamentary tradition, the Speaker or the presiding member should listen to what the MPs state in the House and decide what should be expunged. “In our Parliament neither the Speaker nor the presiding member listens to speeches. This is unacceptable. If you check you can see that there are no tables for the Speaker or MPs of British Parliament because they are expected to listen to others’ speeches instead of being engrossed in other work during debates. For example, the day government MP Tissa Kuttiarachchi used unparliamentary language the presiding member was not listening to his speech and therefore did not act to have the derogatory terms expunged. That led to a dispute, which could have been prevented.”
The Chief Opposition Whip said that the Speaker had been asked to take immediate action with regard to the attack on MP Nanayakkara. “He was there in the Chamber when the incident happened. He should give a ruling on the matter. Otherwise, we will take the matter to the Supreme Court as per the provisions of the Parliament Powers and Privileges Act. I, in my capacity as the Chief Opposition Whip, have already informed the Commonwealth Parliamentary Union, Inter Parliamentary Union and the SAARC. We need an assurance that the freedom of speech will be ensured in Parliament,” Kiriella said.
SJB MPS Ranjith Madduma Bandara and Nalin Bandara Jayamaha also addressed the press.
Govt. MPs make contradictory statements on state of economy
By Shamindra Ferdinando
UNP National List MP Wajira Abeywardena on Sunday (26) disclosed the issuance of a circular by the Finance Ministry to restore overtime and other payments in the public sector.
The declaration was made in Galle soon after Transport and Media Minister Bandula Gunawardane lamented that the government was short of billions of rupees to pay public sector salaries, pensions, Samurdhi payments and meet recurrent expenditure.
Minister Gunawardena and UNP National List MP Abeywardena addressed the local media after the handing over of several buses to the Galle SLTB depot.
Cabinet Spokesman Gunawardena said that the government needed as much as Rs 196 bn before the Sinhala and Tamil New Year and its projected revenue was Rs 173 bn. In addition to that Rs 500 mn was required to settle what Minister Gunawardena called bilateral debt.
Minister Gunawardane said that a part of the first tranche of USD 333 mn from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) would be utilised to pay public sector salaries.
Of the USD 333 mn received so far, USD 121 had been used to pay the first installment of USD 1 bn credit line secured from India early last year, according to State Finance Minister Ranjith Siyambalapitiya.
Power and Energy Minister Kanchana Wijesekera in the second week of August last year revealed as much as Rs 3 bn had been paid as overtime to Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) workers for several months. This disclosure was made in response to a query raised by Chief Opposition Whip Lakshman Kiriella.
One of the major demands of the public sector trade unions on the warpath over the Wickremesinghe-Rajapaksa government’s new tax formula is the restoration of overtime.
Prof. G. L. Peiris yesterday (27) urged Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena to act speedily on the main Opposition Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) request to summon Finance Secretary Mahinda Siriwardena before the parliamentary Committee on Ethics and Privileges.
Addressing the media on behalf of the Freedom People’s Alliance, the former External Affairs Minister said that the Treasury Secretary had challenged the parliament by withholding funds allocated in the budget 2023 to the Election Commission thereby sabotaging the election.
Prof. Peiris said that there couldn’t be a far worse violation of parliamentary privileges than a government official undermining Parliament.
Instead of appreciating the intervention made by the Supreme Court to facilitate the delayed Local Government polls, the ruling party had sought to challenge the apex court, Prof. Peiris said, urging Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena to fulfill his obligations.
Prof. Pieris said that if the government lacked funds, just one percent of USS 333 mn received from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) was sufficient to conduct the election.
The ex-minister said that the IMF wouldn’t oppose the utilisation of a fraction of the first tranche of USD 2.9 bn loan facility provided over a period of four years to guarantee the constitutional rights of the Sri Lankan electorate. (SF)
By Rathindra Kuruwita
Minister of Power and Energy Kanchana Wijesekera announced yesterday that the Cabinet of Ministers has granted approval for allowing China’s Sinopec, Australia’s United Petroleum and RM Parks of the USA, in collaboration with multinational Oil and Gas Company – Shell plc, to enter the fuel retail market in Sri Lanka.
The minister said that each of the three companies would be given 150 dealer operated fuel stations, which are currently operated by Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC). A further 50 fuel stations at new locations will be established by each selected company, he said.
They will be granted licences to operate for 20 years to import, store, distribute and sell petroleum products in Sri Lanka, the minister tweeted.
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