- India agrees to currency swap, focuses on projects and Trinco tank farm
- India’s Adani enters Lanka’s renewable energy sector after port project
- Opposition concerned over decline in foreign reserves, now at $ 1.2 b
- MR summons SLPP MPs to ensure peace within governing coalition
- Cabraal to go before Cabinet to explain economic crisis and forex reserves
- CEB and Treasury officials to explain Yugadanavi agreement to Cabinet
- US House Foreign Affairs Committee responds to TNA’s request for solution
Sri Lanka, at present, has its plate full with a foreign reserves crisis, soaring cost of living, increasing inflation, and to top it all off, the threat of a new Covid-19 variant of concern.
Also, to add to the woes, the sudden islandwide blackout last Friday (3) that lasted hours resulted in the Norochcholai Power Plant shutting down and creating a supply shortfall of 600 MW to the national power grid. The Power Ministry then announced that there would be intermittent power cuts over the next few days until the Norochcholai Power Plant was back in full operation. It is learnt that it would take nearly three days for the Norochcholai Power Plant to re-commence power generation.
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa are busily putting out fires on many fronts while the noose of economic woes continues to tighten its grip around the nation.
President Rajapaksa, who left for Abu Dhabi on Friday to attend the Indian Ocean Conference over the weekend, is expected to meet with several key foreign diplomats, including members of the UAE Government as well as India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, on the sidelines of the summit.
Government members are concerned about the growing economic crises, and the Cabinet of Ministers, at the last Cabinet meeting, discussed the growing economic concerns in the country and decided urgent remedies were needed to overcome the crisis situation.
A majority of the ministers expressed concerns over the rising prices and overall cost of living. They turned to Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa for solutions to arrest the rising prices.
However, the Finance Minister explained that given the precarious situation of the country’s economy, there was no possibility of reducing taxes on commodities to bring down prices or to ensure their availability in the market.
Listening to all that was discussed, the President told the ministers to consider it their collective responsibility, as members of the Government, to address the economic crisis without passing the buck and turning to him (the President).
The ministers had also discussed the impending fuel crisis. Energy Minister Udaya Gammanpila noted that if solutions were not sought now to address the foreign reserves crisis, the country could face an energy crisis next year, which, in turn, would have a cascading effect on economic activities.
Finally, a decision was taken to request that Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal do a presentation to the Cabinet at this week’s meeting on the present economic and foreign reserves situation.
It was also decided that officials from the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) and Treasury would also be asked to make a presentation to the Cabinet this week. This presentation would be on the controversial agreement signed with regard to the Yugadanavi Power Plant and US-based New Fortress Energy Inc. (NFE).
Be that as it may, Sri Lanka, it seems, has now turned to neighbouring India to help it out of the current economic quagmire.
The Government’s decision was evident when Finance Minister Rajapaksa, together with Treasury Secretary S.R. Attygalle last Tuesday (30 November) night, made their way to India to find solutions to Sri Lanka’s burgeoning economic crisis. Basil and Attygalle were welcomed by Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner to India Milinda Moragoda at the Delhi airport.
It was Basil’s first official visit after assuming the role of Finance Minister, and it was High Commissioner Moragoda’s first high-level visit as well.
The two-day visit to India, from last Wednesday (1) to Thursday (2), saw meetings being held with key Indian government ministers including Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, External Affairs Minister Jaishankar, and Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh.
During the meeting with Sitharaman, Basil had sought ways and means of further enhancing economic co-operation with India, and they discussed ways and means by which the existing bilateral economic co-operation programmes between the two countries could be further developed and enhanced.
The Finance Minister then met India’s External Affairs Minister Jaishankar.
However, the meeting between Basil and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which was expected to be held last Thursday, failed to materialise. Said meeting between Basil and Modi was a much-anticipated event. Upon inquiring into the reason for the failure to organise the meeting, it was learnt that it was mainly due to scheduling issues.
The Finance Minister met National Security Advisor Shri Ajit Doval and India’s Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri last Thursday.
Sri Lanka’s High Commission in New Delhi announced that India and Sri Lanka agreed to a four-pronged approach to discuss initiatives on food and energy security to help mitigate Sri Lanka’s economic crisis.
Accordingly, the four-pillar initiative comprises: i) food and health security package on an urgent basis that would envisage an extension of a line of credit to cover the import of food, medicines, and other essential items from India to Sri Lanka; ii) energy security package that would include a line of credit to cover import of fuel from India and an early modernisation of the Trincomalee Tank Farm, iii) offer of a currency swap to help Sri Lanka address the current Balance of Payment issues; and iv) facilitating Indian investments in different sectors in Sri Lanka that would contribute to growth and expand employment.
The bottom line of the agreements reached between India and Sri Lanka, last week, is the inflow of more Indian investments to Sri Lanka that would include the expediting of delayed Indian projects including the Trincomalee Oil Tank Farm.
While Basil was making inroads in India, Prime Minister Rajapaksa held several meetings with foreign diplomats in Colombo.
A meeting with Deputy Chinese Ambassador Hu Wei was among these. The meeting took place last Wednesday at Temple Trees and the Prime Minister was accompanied by CBSL Governor Cabraal.
Rajapaksa, on his official Twitter account, stated that he had discussed “an array of economic and political, global challenges faced due to the pandemic”.
The meeting took place a week after the Cabinet of Ministers approved the signing of a loan agreement with China to secure ¥ 1.5 billion ($ 300 million).
Prime Minister Rajapaksa also hosted a special reception for the foreign envoys from Muslim countries at Shangri-La in Colombo last Tuesday. The dinner was organised by Foreign Minister Prof. G.L. Peiris. Fifteen high commissioners and ambassadors representing Muslim nations had participated in the event.
The Premier had requested the help of Muslim countries to develop the Sri Lankan economy, according to the Prime Minister’s Office.
Enter Adani
Meanwhile, the Chinese Embassy in Colombo, last Thursday, stated that a proposed hybrid energy project in three islands off the Jaffna Peninsula had been suspended due to a “security concern” from a third party.
In a tweet, the Embassy said that the hybrid energy system to be built in three northern islands of Sri Lanka by Chinese high-tech renewable energy company Sino Soar Hybrid Technology, had been suspended.
It said that the same company had now inked a contract with the Maldivian Government to establish solar power plants at 12 of its islands.
“Sino Soar Hybrid Technology, being suspended to build hybrid energy system in three northern islands of Sri Lanka due to ‘security concern’ from a third party, has inked a contract with Maldivian Government on 29 November to establish solar power plants at 12 islands in the Maldives,” the Chinese Embassy in Sri Lanka tweeted.
On 18 January, the Sri Lankan Cabinet of Ministers approved a proposal to involve the Chinese joint venture Sinosoar-Etechwin to install “hybrid renewable energy systems” in Nainativu, Delft (or Neduntheevu), and Analaitivu, located in the Palk Bay.
However, it is reliably learnt that Indian business tycoon Gautham Adani is to invest in the renewable energy-generation projects earmarked in Pooneryn and Mannar in the Northern Province.
Adani visited Sri Lanka last month and met with senior government members while also visiting the Wind Power Project in Mannar.
The Government is currently drawing the necessary documentation to secure Adani’s investment into the renewable energy sector by handing the two projects in the Northern Province through an unsolicited process.
Continuing woes
The dangerously low foreign reserves situation was highlighted in Parliament by main Opposition Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) MP Eran Wickramaratne last week.
He noted that the net foreign reserves had plunged to an all-time low of $ 1.2 billion and warned of a looming dark future.
Wickramaratne claimed that the reserves figure was very low, and excluded the gold reserves of $ 300 million.
Interestingly, members of the Government did not refute Wickramaratne’s statement of record low reserves, which amounts to less than one month’s worth of imports.
The low reserves are believed to be the lowest the country has ever experienced.
The SJB MP also noted that the forex crisis would worsen the shortage of essential food items, aside from making them expensive. He also predicted a fuel shortage leading to power cuts, and warned of the country falling into a period of darkness.
Former Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe also informed Parliament last Monday (29 November) that the country would face a power crisis by March next year.
Wickremesinghe also called on the Government to present to Parliament the documents on the country’s economic conditions sent to the IMF the previous week by the CBSL.
“The reason as to why I am asking for this documentation is because I want to see what has been done in regards to the foreign exchange issue we are currently facing. In the Budget for 2022, it spoke about purchasing oil and coal. But, if we do not have forex, how are we to pay the other countries? In this state, Sri Lanka will have power cuts in the near future, as we do not have oil or coal,” the former Premier said.
Energy Minister Gammanpila, however, refuted Wickremesinghe’s claim of a power crisis, stating that while the Government’s monthly export earnings were $ 1 billion and import expenditure was $ 1.3 billion, priority is given to imports related to medical health and fuel. Therefore, he said the country would not experience the power cuts predicted by Wickremesinghe.
Meanwhile, Secretary to the President Dr. P.B. Jayasundera had said that the Sri Lankan economy will be in an unpredictable state in the future, and is already in a very bad state due to the dollar crisis and import restrictions.
Dr. Jayasundera had made this observation addressing the “Top German Brands in Sri Lanka” event at The Kingsbury Colombo recently.
“It’s not a good time for Sri Lanka. I have been a long-standing Secretary to the President, and this is the worst time of my life. 2020 saw a negative economic growth; not just that, but several activities that kept the economy running have collapsed,” he had added.
The CBSL’s roadmap, released in October this year, had listed that there would be inflows amounting to $ 2.8 billion between October and December through government initiatives, and a further $ 2.2 billion through CBSL measures. Separately, $ 800 million in inflows was attributed to the banking sector.
The CBSL had also expected $ 6.15 billion in inflows via exports, workers’ remittances, services exports, and tourism, also within three months.
However, two months after the prediction by the CBSL, there are doubts over the credibility of the announcement and the whereabouts of the purported inflows.
Governor Cabraal, nevertheless, had expressed confidence in measures announced in the short-term roadmap in October to boost the country’s foreign reserves.
Meanwhile, the CBSL last week announced a “festival offer” for migrant workers, where migrant workers will be able to fetch an additional Rs. 10 for every US dollar they convert into rupees this month through legitimate channels.
TNA visit sparks US Congress
Meanwhile, the Chairman and Ranking Member of the US House Foreign Affairs Committee swung into action shortly after the visit by several senior members of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) to Washington DC.
The two senior legislators, one Democrat and the other Republican, crossed party lines to jointly write to US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken to advocate a permanent solution to the ethnic troubles in Sri Lanka. Excerpts of the letter are below:
“Since the end of Sri Lanka’s almost 30-year civil war, this committee has demonstrated an interest in ensuring that US policy continues to support reconciliation and accountability, while also addressing the root causes of the conflict. We strongly urge the State Department to refocus its efforts in Sri Lanka to emphasise the importance of a substantive and durable political solution.
“The US has rightly championed justice and human rights in Sri Lanka. Advancing these values will require solutions to political questions that remain unanswered years after the end of the civil war, including the meaningful devolution of power in an undivided Sri Lanka. We urge the Department to support the Government’s engagement with Opposition parties, including Tamils and Muslims, to find such solutions.
“While the Sri Lankan people should lead the debate, the Department should make it clear that the US stands ready to support and facilitate this effort. Ultimately, however, it is imperative that any outcome is determined by and meets the needs of all citizens in Sri Lanka, including the Tamil and Muslim people.”
The Sri Lankan Government was yet to respond to the accusations or demands in the congressional letter.
Yugadanavi saga
While the Cabinet of Ministers waits to be briefed on the controversial Yugadanavi deal with NFE this week, the Yugadanavi saga continues.
The Supreme Court is to continue hearing the fundamental rights petitions filed against the Yugadanavi deal. A five-judge bench of the Supreme Court, headed by the Chief Justice, last Monday, fixed the fundamental rights petitions to be heard on 16 and 17 December.
Five petitions were filed against the Government’s decision to transfer the shares. Among the petitioners are SJB General Secretary Ranjith Madduma Bandara, former Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) parliamentarians Sunil Handunnetti and Wasantha Samarasinghe, Archbishop of Colombo Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith, and Ven. Elle Gunawansa Thera.
The Attorney General, taking into account the national importance of these petitions, had requested that the Supreme Court consider these five petitions before a full bench of five or more judges.
On 26 November, Chief Justice Jayantha Jayasuriya appointed a five-member bench of the Supreme Court chaired by him and including Justices Buwaneka Aluwihare, Priyantha Jayawardena, Vijith Malalgoda, and L.T.B. Dehideniya.
Cabinet Ministers Vasudeva Nanayakkara, Wimal Weerawansa, and Gammanpila had decided to present their case through a separate panel of lawyers before the Supreme Court. They retained a private counsel, Uditha Egalahewa PC.
The petitioners had named Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, the Cabinet of Ministers, NFE, West Coast Power (Pvt.) Ltd., the Ceylon Electricity Board, the Attorney General, and several others as respondents in the petition.
The petitioners had stated that on 7 July 2021, the framework agreement was signed between the Government of Sri Lanka and NFE for the disposal of 40% of the total shares held at West Coast Power (Pvt.) Ltd. by Yugadanavi (Pvt.) Ltd.
The petitioners had further said that agreements had been further entered into for the execution of the Terminal Project, which includes a floating storage regasification unit (FSRU), mooring system and the pipelines, and the supply of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to West Coast Power.
The petitioners had noted that to the best of their knowledge, the share sales and purchase agreement (SSPA) pertaining to the sale of 40% of the shares in West Coast Power (Pvt) Ltd. and the gas supply agreements, had not been placed before the Cabinet of Ministers to date.
They had also noted that bundling the contracts for the LNG terminal, construction of pipelines, and LNG supply in a single unsolicited proposal and awarding them to a foreign-based company without following a transparent procedure, was an enormous threat to national energy security.
They had added that the proposal to purchase 40% of the shares in West Coast Power was contrary to the national energy policy and strategies.
Meanwhile, SJB MP Madduma Bandara had also questioned in Parliament why the controversial agreement with the US-based NFE had still not been presented to the Parliament, as promised by Power Minister Gamini Lokuge last month.
“They have sold our energy security, a component of our national security, shamelessly to the US. They have given our Yugadanavi Power Plant without even showing the agreement to Parliament. Lokuge said that he will present it to Parliament over a month ago. Where is it? It was signed in July,” queried Madduma Bandara in Parliament last Monday.
Lokuge was not present in Parliament on Monday, since he was under quarantine after testing positive for Covid-19 the previous week.
Deepening rift
Meanwhile, the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) and governing Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) have been at loggerheads for some time with their disagreements, which were suppressed for some time, and now being aired in the open by seniors of both parties, even in Parliament.
The SLFP said the public was losing confidence in the Government led by the SLPP.
SLFP National Organiser State Minister Duminda Dissanayake said that the public were not happy with some of the statements made and decisions taken by the SLPP.
He said the SLFP, as a party, will look to strengthen itself ahead of the next election.
Dissanayake also reminded members of the SLPP that their ancestral home is the SLFP.
He noted that even Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa won the war against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) as the SLFP Leader.
The State Minister said that the SLFP had been weakened as a result of some issues in the party.
However, he said the SLFP will look to regain lost ground, and no one could prevent it from doing so.
Meanwhile, SLFP Senior Vice President Prof. Rohana Lakshman Piyadasa said the Government was just straying around without a vision, and that people would make their sentiments known at the first possible instance.
“Although the SLFP is the main coalition partner of the Government, they (Government) have levelled various allegations against the party, insulted the party in various ways, and have now started to slam our Party Leader. They say the two-thirds majority can be used to punish, and have asked us to leave the Government. I cannot believe that these statements have happened without the knowledge of senior government members, because they could take the necessary steps to prevent these statements from being made. We cannot see such an effort being made,” Piyadasa added.
SLFP Vice President Minister Mahinda Amaraweera also warned last week that around 50-60 government MPs would walk out if the SLFP decided to leave the Government at some point.
“Those who ask the SLFP to leave the Government didn’t criticise us initially. They first criticised people like Energy Minister Udaya Gammanpila, Industries Minister Wimal Weerawansa, and Water Supply Minister Vasudeva Nanayakkara. Then, they started criticising the SLFP. They have told about 30 MPs to leave now. But it is a known fact that when these 30 MPs leave the Government, a group from the SLPP will also leave,” he claimed, adding that between 50-60 MPs would leave the Government at such a point.
According to Amaraweera, the Government will not have the two-thirds majority in such a scenario, or even a simple majority.
“We have made it clear that we are ready to step down from the ministerial posts whenever the party decides to leave the Government. We agree with any decision taken by the Party Central Committee, and our positions are not at all an obstacle to that. The party is more important to us than the posts,” he said.
He stated that the SLFP had no interest in destabilising the President and the Government, which was elected with the SLFP’s support. “At present, we don’t want to destabilise the President and the Government. We are trying to rectify the shortcomings of the Government,” he added.
The clash between the SLPP and SLFP had been witnessed in the open over statements made against SLFP Leader Maithripala Sirisena by Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage.
The battle between the two ruling coalition partners continued in Parliament recently, with SLPP member State Minister Roshan Ranasinghe criticising Sirisena over a statement he had made earlier.
Sirisena had earlier noted that the Government enjoyed a two-thirds majority because of the SLFP.
Meanwhile, the SLFP has commenced the process to prepare for the impending local government and provincial council (PC) elections.
Accordingly, interviews are being conducted at the party headquarters to appoint new electoral organisers to the electorates that are vacant at present in order to carry out the party’s organisational work at every electorate.
However, SLFP General Secretary State Minister Dayasiri Jayasekera, last week, observed that the SLFP had no intention of leaving the coalition government as yet.
“People can say various things, but as a party, we have not made such a decision. We will continue to work with the Government. We formed this Government, and we elected the President. We might not be able to agree with all the decisions made by the Government, but as a coalition party within the Government, we have spoken to the President, the Prime Minister, and SLPP leaders,” Jayasekara told the media.
SLPP hits back
The SLPP, meanwhile, continues to hit back at its coalition partner.
Senior SLPPer Minister Prasanna Ranatunga claimed that both the SLFP and its leader should keep in mind that they had contested the last general election under the SLPP and its flower bud symbol.
When queried about the infighting between the SLFP and SLPP in the Government, Ranatunga told the media that a two-thirds majority was not a requisite to operate a government.
He explained that a two-thirds majority would be needed only for a special reason, like getting a new constitution or amendment passed in Parliament.
Ranatunga reiterated that the Government would not fall even if the SLFP were to leave it.
“Any one is free to leave the Government without making various statements and boasting about themselves,” the Minister added.
SLPP General Secretary MP Sagara Kariyawasam reiterated that any coalition partner who has issues with the Government should leave.
Targeting the SLFP, Kariyawasam noted that the party should co-operate with the governing party if it was planning on remaining with the Government or, if critical comments were to continue, that the SLFP could continue to make them after leaving the party.
He further slammed the SLFP leadership saying that Sirisena would have been the first to step forward to take credit for the organic agriculture concept had it been successful. He was referring to the criticism levelled by the former President over the Government’s organic agriculture policy.
Backbench SLPP MP Premitha Bandara Tennakoon also joined in the SLPP’s attacks against the SLFP. However, his attack was more targeted towards the SLFP leadership.
Tennakoon claimed that while the SLPP had a bond with the SLFP as it was the former party of a majority of the SLPPers, it had no connection with Sirisena.
He further noted that giving nominations to Sirisena from the SLPP to contest at the last general election was the party’s (SLPP’s) biggest mistake.
“We love the SLFP, but we don’t have such a feeling for Maithripala Sirisena. It was not proper for the Pohottuwa (SLPP) to join with him (Sirisena). The Pohottuwa should not have given him nominations from the party at the last general election. He too should have not contested under the Pohottuwa. That was the biggest dissimilarity. It should not have happened from any point of view. I’m not saying this out of hatred, but it really was against all odds,” Tennakoon stated, adding that although the SLPP was aware of Sirisena’s corrupt actions, the party was now unable to expose them, as he (Sirisena) had contested under the SLPP.
Seeing the dangers of the increasing clashes between the SLPP and its coalition partners, Prime Minister Rajapaksa decided to intervene to ensure that peace prevails in the Government.
The Premier convened a meeting last (4) evening at 6 p.m. at Temple Trees with all parliamentarians of the SLPP. Coalition party members were not invited for the meeting.
A senior government source said the Prime Minister intended to discuss issues faced by the Government and the importance of maintaining peace with coalition partners while facing many challenges.
Finance Minister Rajapaksa had also spoken to several SLFP members in Parliament about keeping the peace within the governing coalition. SLFPers Dissanayake and Jayasekera had said the party only responded due to provocation by the SLPP.
SLPP General Secretary Kariyawasam, who had also walked into the discussion, had accused the SLFP of starting the clash.
However, Basil had told Kariyawasam that regardless of who started it, it was the responsibility of the main party to ensure that peace prevailed within the governing coalition. “This is what the Prime Minister also plans to discuss in the evening.”
Advising the Church
Amidst the growing dissension among the Catholic Church against the Government’s failure to bring to justice those involved in the Easter Sunday attacks, Chief Government Whip Minister Johnston Fernando had called on the Catholic clergy to not fall for tactics of the Opposition political parties.
Addressing a ceremony held at the launch of the Road Development Authority’s (RDA) premix asphalt plant at Andigamawatte in Katugampola, the Minister had alleged that Opposition conspirators had infiltrated the Catholic Church.
“I call on all reverend fathers and other members of the clergy not to fall for the Opposition conspirators’ tactics and thereby become their catspaws. We have seen that they capitalised on the summoning of Rev. Fr. Cyril Gamini to the CID (Criminal Investigation Department) to spread hate against this Government. Fr. Cyril Gamini’s visit to the CID was to record a statement. He made public statements, and the CID wants an official record from him. That is in accordance with the existing laws of the country. Rev. Cyril Gamini made his statements on the Easter Sunday incidents. The CID is the investigating body of the Easter Sunday terror attacks, so it is natural they would record a statement from the Reverend Father. Suppose the CID did not do so, then the very same Opposition would have clamoured that we did not do the investigation. That is the nature of Opposition we have in this country today,” Fernando had claimed.
Sirisena cleared?
Meanwhile, former State Intelligence Service (SIS) Chief Senior DIG Nilantha Jayawardena told the Colombo Permanent High Court Trial-at-Bar that definite intelligence information was not given to then President Maithripala Sirisena, who was overseas at the time, with regard to the 2019 Easter Sunday attacks until the attacks took place.
He had reportedly made this statement while testifying in court for the fifth day last Monday.
He had said that no definite information was given to the then Prime Minister, State Defence Minister, other relevant personnel in the political authority, or to the Inspector General of Police (IGP).
The senior police officer had, last week, testified at the Colombo Permanent High Court Trial-at-Bar in the case filed against ex-Police Chief Pujith Jayasundera and ex-Defence Secretary Hemasiri Fernando, who are each charged under 855 counts for failing to prevent the 21 April 2019 attacks.
Jayawardena, the first witness in the case, was cross examined by Attorney-at-Law Roshan Dehiwala, who is appearing on behalf of Jayasundera.
During the cross examination, Dehiwala had questioned Jayawardena on whether the SIS had failed to convert the information received on 4 April 2019 from a foreign counterpart of a terror attack, into specific intelligence information, and in turn make a prior warning before 20 April 2019. In response, Jayawardena had said that he did not have the information to make the said prior warning based on specific intelligence information until he received a telephone call at 4.12 p.m. on 20 April 2019, the day before the attacks.
Dehiwala had again questioned Jayawardena as to how he had informed then IGP Jayasundera of the foreign intelligence information received on 20 April 2019. The witness had replied that the message was sent to Jayasundera through a particular software used by the Police Department at the time. The attorney had then queried as to whether he (Jayawardena) would accept the motion if he suggested that the said notice had not been duly referred to Jayasundera as stated by the witness. Jayawardena had replied: “No, I don’t accept that. I sent the message through that software. I also called him and informed (him about) the matter.”
When Jayawardena was questioned as to whether he had admitted that he had not given then IGP Jayasundera specific intelligence information about an attack during the period from 4 to 19 April 2019, he had said: “Yes, I accept it. I did not provide specific intelligence information about an attack until the day before the attacks, but I did provide information on the information which I received on 4 April 2019 and the dry run conducted by the group led by National Thowheed Jamaath (NTJ) Leader Zahran Hashim.”
Judge Mohamed Irshadeen had then questioned whether Jayawardena had passed on the specific intelligence information provided the day before the attacks to the Prime Minister, the Opposition Leader, or the Deputy Defence Minister in the absence of the then Defence Minister, who was not in the country. In response, Jayawardena had said that he had not informed the political authorities in that regard.
Meanwhile, IGP Chandana D. Wickramaratne had also appeared before the Colombo High Court Trial-at-Bar to testify in the case filed against former IGP Jayasundera.
Senior Deputy Solicitor General (SDSG) Dileepa Peiris, appearing on behalf of the prosecution, had requested the court to summon current IGP Wickramaratne, who is named as a witness in the case, to give evidence.
When questioned about the responsibilities of the IGP regarding national security, the witness had said that as a member of the National Security Council, the IGP had the powers to maintain law and order. “It is a heavy responsibility. It cannot be confined to a framework. The IGP has a huge responsibility regarding national security,” he had said.
However, he had stated that the actions taken by him as the IGP in any case may be different from the actions taken by the previous IGPs, and that there was no rule that the actions taken by one IGP should be taken by all other IGPs.
Meanwhile, when queried as to whether the information provided by the SIS to the IGP should be 100% complete in order for an investigation to be commenced, Wickramaratne had said that there was no need for the information to be 100% complete. “The IGP should investigate and act on the information received. The IGP should always think that there is an invisible side and therefore, make decisions in consultation with other officers. There are also times when individual decisions have to be made. The IGP should be prepared for such,” he had said.
The case is to be taken up again on 18 January 2022.