Rajitha hits out at former Agriculture Minister over Customs Chief

Friday, 29 May 2015 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

By Charumini de Silva

The Government yesterday lashed out at former Minister of Agriculture Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena, who claimed that former Customs Chief Jagath Wijeweera’s resignation was due to the Glyphosate scandal.

Cabinet spokesman Rajitha Senaratne yesterday said that Abeywardena was not the Customs Director General (DG) to make such a claim.

“Mahinda Yapa is not the DG of Customs. The former DG has informed us that he would even provide another letter if necessary,” he added.

However, the Minister did admit that there could have been a connection between Wijeweera’s resignation and the Glyphosate scandal.

“There could be a connection. The Former DG himself has informed us that he resigned on his own and there was no pressure on him to resign as others are trying to imply,” Senaratne explained.

Meanwhile, Customs Department Acting Director General R. Semasinghe said yesterday that Wijeweera had handed over a letter to the Ministry of Finance stating that he did not give any statements to any news websites regarding his resignation. As per the letter, Wijeweera is now exploring the possibility of taking legal action against websites publishing statements attributed to him.

MR not a lunatic to come back as Opposition MP: Rajitha

Cabinet spokesman Rajitha Senaratne yesterday said that former President Mahinda Rajapaksa was not a lunatic to contest the forthcoming general election to try and enter Parliament as just an Opposition MP.

“As far as I know he is not a lunatic to make a decision like that, where he will lose all his privileges as a former President and walk around with only two security personnel. Would I like to go back to being a Pradeshiya Sabha MP?” he asked.

He also lashed out at the former Chief Justice Sarath N. Silva, claiming that he was turning into a “mental mess.”

“The present Government is not an Achcharu (jumbled) Government as he claims, but he definitely is in a mental mess. It seems like he has given Kakille (crazy) decisions. We know that when a person grows old these things happen, therefore no one should take his statements seriously,” Senaratne added.

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