The Hon. Arjuna Sujeewa Senasinghe, Attorney-at-Law

¶ 01 Thank you for the opportunity, Hon. Presiding Member.

¶ 02 I am pleased to speak after my old friend, Minister Handunnetti. He accused the Opposition, but his conscience knows the decency and humility of this Opposition. You also know how you acted when you were in the Opposition. The COPE Chair also said “AKD” is a brand. I reflected on how that brand began.

¶ 03 You started with fascism, Marxism, socialism; then repackaged into “democratic socialism,” and now seem unable to decide between capitalism and socialism. I see our President, and also Nalin Jayatissa, Harini Amarasuriya, and Sunil Handunnetti leaning towards capitalism. They are trying to do it but cannot. He was upset when I told him once he cannot even run a small shop; I placed him as a cashier to learn. He grew angry. Working as a cashier in the US is nothing to be ashamed of. But today it has become true: this Government has proved they cannot run even a small shop. The economy and everything else are declining.

¶ 04 Let me begin with the Speaker. Today, the Speaker has been subjected to many allegations due to action against the Deputy Secretary-General. Even I made a request from the Assistant Secretary-General earlier. I raised this previously: the Speaker’s Secretary—a PHI—reportedly scolded your receptionist Lakshan when the officer did not recognize the name on the phone, and then summoned him to the Speaker’s office and pulled his personal file. Administration is the duty of your office, including the Secretary-General. I asked for an inquiry. I must correct a mistake: I earlier said the receptionist was a lady; actually it was Mr. Lakshan. In flagrant breach of norms and rules, that conduct occurred. Please inquire. Also inquire into the allegations against the Speaker.

¶ 05 I am not talking about the DS-G’s political appointment. But everyone accepts he rendered impartial service. During that service, it is alleged he removed a personal contractor. What happens in the Speaker’s office is relevant to Parliament. This is not a private place. One allegation is vehicle misuse: using three vehicles when entitled to two, and drawing two fuel allowances—one as Speaker, another as MP. Another is misuse of Parliamentary Media Division equipment; obtaining additional meals under Parliamentary accounts without paying the stipulated amount; appointing an “investigations officer” unlawfully and paying him from Parliamentary funds with meals and transport; and unlawfully occupying two state official residences. There are many such allegations.

¶ 06 They say the law is equal to all. But if complaints are made to the Bribery Commission or CID, no action is taken when it is about this Government. Look at the coal procurement for Norochcholai: this theft can bring the country down, yet no action is taken. But if a complaint is against us, even without basis, the CID or Bribery Commission is used to harass us and impose maximum punishment. That is the latest “AKD governance”: bending all institutions to their will. The judiciary is pressured; if a magistrate grants bail, he is transferred. Bail is a rule; in 99% of cases bail should be given, except in special circumstances. Yet instead of following that, they are pressuring the courts.

¶ 07 On education, the Prime Minister spoke today. There are over 120—indeed about 140—errors in these proposed reforms. Instead of addressing that, they blame the Opposition and claim we are obscenifying. What did we do in Government? In our ministries, there were no allegations—about women, men, money or bribes. We worked straight. Not so with this Government: there are heavy allegations about current secretaries and others. We do not care about personal lives; we care that the law is properly applied. Otherwise, as with Hitler’s Gestapo, this Government has already begun a police-state approach. In today’s tech era, such repression will topple the Government. The biggest reason will be corruption. What are you doing about it?

¶ 08 On coal: we went to Norochcholai. The plant must generate 900 MW per day; 90 MW is used internally, so 810 MW should be fed into the grid. But only about 705 MW is generated—100+ MW lost due to poor-quality coal. Who brought this bad coal? Tenders should have been called in April; instead, it was dragged to September. The first tender was tailored for a friend; this one too is for their friend. This can cause a severe power crisis. Now the Government is attempting spot tenders. Under the previous government, those who conducted spot tenders were prosecuted by the Bribery Commission. But this Government is now going for spot tenders—no cases for those losses; courts are not acting; law enforcement is not acting; only the Opposition is chased while Government theft is hidden. See this destruction.

¶ 09 Norochcholai equipment has a 30-year life. Due to bad coal, it can drop to 25 years; the reduction of lifespan is a massive loss. If proper overhauls are done every five years, we could run 35–40 years. But with bad coal, we may not go beyond 25–26 years. The daily 100 MW shortfall is roughly a Rs. 100 million daily loss. Who pays?

¶ 10 Now look at foreign relations. Today there is tension between India and China. China has suspended investments; the Chinese Foreign Minister’s meeting with the President was cancelled; the Hambantota refinery is halted; the Central Expressway is halted; the promised 850 million project is halted; investors are leaving. With India, you have secretly signed eight agreements—this from a group that was against such agreements. We do not even know what they are. This could harm territorial integrity and the country’s future.

¶ 11 There was also a visit to China reportedly asking to allow a research vessel to come without fear. But China is not allowing such a vessel to come. I believe this Government has a muddled policy—capitalism, socialism, Marxism—all mixed; no cohesive team line. Lal Kantha says one thing; Anura Kumara and Harini Amarasuriya say another; Tissa Vitharana—sorry, Tilvin Silva—says another. The Government has lost its direction. You cannot run international relations this way. You need a clear policy on an open economy—how to engage with China, India, the US. Otherwise we will face a deep economic downturn.

¶ 12 They claimed the IMF agreement would be revised. But the IMF says it cannot be revised. The Central Bank Governor says, under the current framework, if by this year we cannot achieve 6% growth, and growth stays at 3.5–4%, within two years the economy could plunge into a great abyss. This path is a failing path. We urge the Government to focus on democracy and development.