by Buddhika Samaraweera in The Morning, June 27, 2023
*Warns of perils of acting only to retain power
The ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) stated that President Ranil Wickremesinghe should remove ministers who do not perform their responsibilities properly and replace them with suitable ones, without acting solely on the basis of the need to retain political power.
It was recently reported that President Wickremesinghe is unhappy about the performance of certain ministers.
While commenting on the matter to The Daily Morning, SLPP General Secretary and Parliamentarian, Attorney Sagara Kariyawasam said that it is the responsibility of the President to remove ministers who do not perform well. “It is the duty of the President to periodically monitor their work. Without merely working to retain political power, he (Wickremesinghe) should decide who fulfils their responsibilities and who does not. If there is anyone who does not work properly, they should be removed and replaced with suitable ones.”
He also said that decisions with regard to such ministers should be taken irrespective of the political parties that they represent. “I’m not going to name anyone, but if someone does not do their job, there should be action against them irrespective of party affiliations. We are currently in a state of crisis, particularly in respect of the economy. In this situation, there is no possibility of protecting individuals. Therefore, Wickremesinghe should take appropriate action against anyone who does not perform well instead of trying to protect individuals.”
These remarks come in the wake of reports that there would be a Cabinet reshuffle or the appointment of a few more Cabinet Ministers following Wickremesinghe’s return to the country. However, Kariyawasam on 25 June told The Daily Morning that the SLPP had no knowledge of such preparations nor had they engaged in any related discussion.
https://www.themorning.lk/articles/1qIceNTxzUnAGpnuVsv5
