• Aviation Min. Bimal Rathnayake says PM relied on details made available to her to respond to MP despite it not being her subject Min. 

The Government stated that the political situation surrounding the recent incident where Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya provided details about the revenue generated through the Supreme SAT 1 satellite, which were later confirmed to be inaccurate, has not led to any rifts within the Government as claimed by some parties.

Transport, Highways, Ports and Civil Aviation Minister Bimal Rathnayake made this statement yesterday (13) while speaking to the media. Rathnayake emphasised that the Government remains committed to protecting its Members, including the Premier, Ministers and even Parliamentarians. 

He opined that Dr. Amarasuriya is an important Member of the Government, and that the said incident should not be misinterpreted. 

“The Prime Minister has to answer questions regarding other ministries as well. When the relevant MP asked that question several months ago, she had requested more time as she had not received proper, complete details by then. She had received the relevant details after some time. However, it is not her subject ministry. We can’t unnecessarily postpone a question posed by an MP; therefore, on the second occasion of questioning regarding the same, she then decided to present the details that she had received,” he said, adding that the Prime Minister relied on the details that she had received.

Cabinet Spokesperson and Mass Media Minister Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa stated this week that there is no satellite belonging to Sri Lanka by the name Supreme SAT 1.