SLFP will not stop pressurising President till Arjuna Mahendran is dismissed

Thursday, 14 May 2015 02:42 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

By Jayashika Padmasiri

The Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) yesterday announced that the complete Opposition will work together until the Central Bank Governor Arjuna Mahendran is removed from his post and action is taken against him.

Opposition Leader Nimal Siripala de Silva addressing a press conference yesterday in Colombo said that the Government’s solution for the economic crisis is to print and issue more currency notes.

“Today the Singaporean citizen Arjuna Mahendran is putting his English signature on Sri Lankan currency notes and issuing them. However, we as the Opposition will give our complete support to remove Mahendran from the CB Governor’s post. We have already submitted a motion to the parliament with 91 signatures requesting his resignation. However, what we are asking is why Mahendran has still not been taken into custody,” Silva questioned.

He added that they have complained about him to the Bribery Commission and raised this issue up in Parliament though the authorities have failed to take any steps against him. He said that they were against the Financial Crimes Investigation Division (FCID) as it is appointed by the Prime Minister while stating that they were bringing up the motion against Mahendan to pressurise President Sirisena with the majority support in Parliament.

“We do not know what stance the President has on this issue, but we can state the party’s stance and after the motion is passed then the leader’s stance will also be clear,” he said.

Commenting on the investigations launched against the SLFP MPs Basil Rajapaksa, Sajin Vass Gunawardena and Johnston Fernando, the Opposition Leader said that they were not against the investigations but that they believed the investigations were motivated by an agenda of political revenge.

Meanwhile, SLFP General Secretary Anura Priyadharshana Yapa who was also present at the press conference said, “they have been remanded under the charges of taking goods from Sathosa, misusing vehicles and for giving Samurdhi houses. What are their faults other than giving incorrect ‘B’ Reports?” he questioned.

Nevertheless, answering a question raised by the media regarding SLFP giving nominations for MPs to contest in the upcoming general election, Yapa said that all the MPs of the SLFP are qualified to be given nominations since none of the allegations against the present MPs have been proven.

The SLFP also stated that local government bodies should not be dissolved right away as the gazette is still not ready.

Corruption has taken place even with good governance: Champika

Power and Energy Minister Patali Champika Ranawaka says that there has been corruption in the current government, which is focused on establishing good governance practices.

Ranawaka had told the media that there had been instances of corruption even after the current administration took office earlier this year.

The Minister explained that such instances of corruption involved a failure to take action against wrongdoers connected to the Central Bank Treasury Bond issue.

He also accused some members of the Government of accepting bribes to conduct investigations against some individuals while stopping investigations against others.