Opp. Leader accuses Govt. of reneging on election promise of jobs for graduates

• Says applications were doled out during Presidential Election campaign but many denied employment 
• Says many applicants disqualified citing inadequate qualifications and on other grounds
• Leader of House denies charges and says jobs will be given as promised  
• Says of 91,764 applications received, 59,556 were found eligible for jobs under graduate employment program

By Chandani Kirinde

Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa yesterday accused the Government of duping unemployed graduates by calling for applications and issuing letters of appointment in a hurry during the election campaign but not letting the appointees report to work after the election.

Making a special statement in the House, the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) Colombo District MP said the SLPP promised during the Presidential Election campaign that under its Government all unemployed graduates would be given Government jobs and in keeping with this, published an advertisement on 7 February calling for applications from the unemployed graduates promising to recruit them for various jobs existing in the public sector.

Thereafter in the last week of February, the Government released letters calling from those applicants for training and asked them to report back within three days.

“However, with the intervention of the Elections Commission, that recruitment process was suspended. After the General Election, the Presidential Secretariat again issued a release on 14 August, calling the applicants to report to work. However, on 16 August, the Ministry of Public Service, Provincial Councils and Local Government issued an announcement publishing the names of 40,092 graduates who are not qualified for the training,” he said.

Premadasa said various reasons including non-recognition of certain degrees by the University Grants Commission, inclusion of some names of these names as contributors to the Employees Provident Fund (EPF), failure to attach copies of certain documents etc. have been mentioned for the disqualifying of them.

The Opposition Leader asked the Government to explain what action would be taken to rectify the situation.

Leader of the House Minister Dinesh Gunawardena said in response that all promised employment would be given jobs as decided by the Cabinet of Ministers recently.

“The President initiated a program to provide jobs for 50,000 unemployed graduates. The President was compelled to initiate this program as the former Government had completely neglected graduates,” Gunawardena stated.

He disclosed that the Government received 91,764 applications in response to call for applications. “A total of 59,556 of the applicants were found to be eligible under the graduate employment program,” he added.  “The process of sending out letters to the qualified applicants instructing them to report for training had already begun when the Election Commission issued its directive to halt sending the letters until the election is concluded,” Gunawardena said.

By the time the EC issued its directive, letters had already been mailed to 45,869 of the applicants.

After the election however, the President, together with the Prime Minister and the Cabinet, has taken steps to direct the relevant Government departments to send letters to 60,000 of the qualified applicants, including 6,187 who actively contribute to the Employee Provident Fund (EPF), he also told Parliament.

“If anyone listened properly to the President’s speech at the Ceremonial Sitting of Parliament, they would have heard the President clearly restating this. Steps have been taken to issue letters to all of them,” Gunawardena added.

He also said that any graduate who has a degree from an institution recognised by the University Grants Commission (UGC) can lodge an appeal if their application has been rejected and it will also be 

investigated.