Even though a local government election has been announced, the local council chairpersons and municipal mayors of the Anuradhapura district are still using their official vehicles and are abusing their privileges.
At a time when all but a few of these chairpersons are running as candidates for this year’s local government elections, people are questioning whether it is ethical to use official vehicles like this.
Anuradhapura district alone has eighteen regional councils and one municipal council. People say that all these local council and city council chairpersons are engaged in political activities as candidates. The voter further said that in such a situation, the use of official vehicles of these institutions, which are maintained by the people’s money, is repugnant.
The people further say that it is absolutely unacceptable for the chairman’s who have become candidates to go on their private journeys using fuel and drivers from government funds and using vehicles worth crores at a time when the current government has fallen into a severe economic crisis and it is difficult to even hold the election.
The people further demand that the attention of the Election Commission be directed to stop the destruction of the government’s money.
When we asked the North Central Local Government Commissioner Mr. NHR Nishantha regarding this allegation, he said that this situation exists everywhere in the island. The commissioner further said that the chairman and mayors have the legal authority to use official vehicles, but it is completely prohibited to use them for election purposes. –
Lankadeepa
