Mr. Iran Wickramaratne, Member of Parliament, spoke at a press conference held at the Opposition Leader’s office in Colombo today (14), expressing deep regret over a shooting at an election rally attended by former American president and presidential candidate Donald Trump. He noted that some political parties in Sri Lanka have resorted to similar tactics when unable to achieve their goals, urging the nation to abandon such practices. Wickramaratne emphasized the need to enhance the security of opposition leader Sajith Premadasa, stating that it is the current government’s responsibility to provide him with adequate protection. He affirmed that in a democratic country, politics should be driven by the will of the people and elections, not by violence.
Wickramaratne criticized the current government’s use of executive powers to manipulate the upcoming election, including making questionable appointments through governors. He condemned the illegal appointment of individuals who submitted nominations for local government elections to supervise local government institutions, calling for an immediate suspension of these appointments. The Election Commission has also requested the withdrawal of these appointments to prevent nominated individuals from influencing local government institutions.
Furthermore, Wickramaratne highlighted concerns about the issuance of liquor licenses to Members of Parliament, who then sell these licenses to companies for profit. He called for an investigation by the Anti-Corruption Commission, insisting that the law should be applied equally to all, including MPs from the United People’s Power if they are involved.
He also raised issues regarding the issuance of visas to tourists, criticizing the government’s decision to outsource this task to an international company. Despite the government claiming that VFS would handle the visa issuance, it has been managed by other companies using VFS’s name. Wickramaratne argued that this fraudulent practice has resulted in significant financial losses for the country, even exceeding the infamous bond fraud. He demanded a scientific and technical audit of the visa issuance system to address these concerns.
Since 2012, Mobitel, a Sri Lankan company, has been responsible for issuing visas. Mobitel requested an update to the visa issuance process, but this request was ignored, and the task was eventually assigned to another company, risking data leakage and security breaches. Wickramaratne called for legal reforms to address these issues and urged a thorough investigation before transferring visa issuance responsibilities to another institution.
In conclusion, Wickramaratne stressed the importance of maintaining integrity and transparency in the electoral process and governance, especially with an election on the horizon. He called for the rejection of fraudulent practices and emphasized the need to protect the sovereignty of the people through a clean and fair election system.
