The main Opposition, the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB), alleged that the Government is taking arbitrary action against public officials when in reality it should stick to the relevant institutional protocols concerning taking action against officials.

These concerns were expressed with regard to the ongoing legal action against several top prison officials for allegedly releasing an inmate without the President’s approval during a pardoning programme that took place to mark this year’s Vesak Poya Day.

Noting this, during a press briefing held yesterday (23), former SJB Parliamentarian Wasantha Yapa Bandara further claimed that the Government is trying to label public officials as corrupt and that it is unacceptable. He added: “There are institutional protocols in place to deal with public officials. It has been stipulated that a fair probe must be conducted regarding public officials. At the same time, in the event a certain official has committed an offence, these protocols state that the relevant official should be given an opportunity to present facts from his side.”

Moreover, Bandara added that the prison authorities have requested the Justice Ministry to address the crises prevailing within prisons, and that prison authorities are inconvenienced as prisons are overcrowded.