The Hon. Wasantha Samarasinghe - Minister of Trade, Commerce, Food Security and Cooperative Development

¶ 01 Hon. Deputy Chairperson, today’s debate on the supplementary allocation the Hon. Prime Minister, as Minister of Education, has presented, has been diverted into a debate on educational qualifications. As a Government, our focus must be on the people now facing hardship. Members said not to divide classrooms, not to treat children differently. However, as a Government we needed a criterion. We decided to grant this allowance to children of families receiving Aswesuma to purchase educational materials. If anyone outside that faces hardship, we will also consider that. We took this decision because our children are facing difficulties. This is not children’s fault: those who governed did not create a classroom environment where parents can provide basic needs like shoes, bags, books, pencils, pens. Education has fallen; people who created this crisis now come to discuss education.

¶ 02 Many asked me why we are not questioning Namal Rajapaksa’s educational qualifications. In this House, it has been discussed. A professor at the University of Sri Jayewardenepura said he received death threats because Namal Rajapaksa had produced a foreign certificate to sit the Law College entrance exam. A person now under political asylum in Switzerland, Tushara, said that in 2010 they sat the final exam together; Namal sat in an A/C room with a computer and prior access to papers; he complained to the Chief Justice, the former Secretary, examiners and police, and had to flee the country. He is ready to come and testify so justice is done.

¶ 03 At Law College, even for non-final exams, you cannot take phones into the hall; you must switch off and hand them to the supervisor. But he sat in an A/C room with internet and a computer. That is how he passed to become a lawyer—by violating procedures using political power as the President’s son. Later, he even applied in 2011 to the University of Sri Jayewardenepura for a postgraduate (in criminology) without a first degree; the application was rejected. A member of the panel received death threats from the Vice Chancellor for rejecting “the king’s son.”

¶ 04 While thousands of children in our schools struggle without teachers, water, toilets—5,000 schools have under 200 students; many lack English teachers; in the North Central Province 4,000 teachers short; some schools lack English and Maths; only 18 of 72 required education administrators are in place—children there lose opportunities because their parents aren’t Presidents or Ministers. Yet these others use certificates and go to court. Many in both Government and Opposition struggled to qualify properly; they know the effort. Those who wrote exams in rooms now question degrees earned honestly.

¶ 05 We must investigate and deliver justice. In this supplementary, we will ensure maximum fairness to our children. No child will be treated unfairly. Thank you.