Why Rajapaksa smells an election in near

future?

BY Gagani Weerakoon-JUL 01 2018

The 16 Government members of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party who walked away
from the Government with the intention of working as a ‘separate group’ in the
Opposition last week said they should no longer be addressed as the 'Group of 16’
because they have decided to work together with the Sri Lanka Podujana
Peramuna (SLPP). UPFA Parliamentarian W.D.J. Seneviratne said so, after meeting
SLPP leaders including its Chairman G. L. Peiris and National Organizer Basil
Rajapaksa at the SLPP Head Office in Battaramulla.
Speaking to journalists after the talks, MP Seneviratne said, “We shouldn’t be
called the ‘Group of 16’ any more. We decided to work together as one group to
change the Government. We have always been in the Opposition since the day we
left the Government. There was no in between”.

He said the discussions were cordial and helped diminish any ambiguousness and
discrepancies among the two factions. When asked whether they would take
membership of the SLPP, the MP said there was no such need.

MP Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena said they were invited by the SLPP to attend
the next group meeting of the Joint Opposition (JO) which would be held early
this week.
“We accepted the invitation and we will attend the JO group meeting to be held
under former President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s leadership at his residence in
Colombo,” he said.
He assured that they would work together with the JO as one anti-Government
group. “With the support of other parties, we will work together on one stage to
face upcoming elections,” he said.

MPs Thilanga Sumathipala, Dayasiri Jayasekara and S. B. Dissanayake who are

overseas and MP Dilan Perera who attended a wedding were among the
absentees.
Meanwhile, National Freedom Front (NFF) Leader Wimal Weerawansa said that
they are willing to welcome anyone defecting from the Government. That was
prior to which an hour-long deliberation, with representatives of the 16 UPFA
Parliamentarians, who defected from the Government, including MPs Susil
Premajayantha, Dilan Perera, Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena, Chandima
Weerakkody and others took place on Tuesday (26).

Weerawansa also praised the 16 MPs for support extended to the Opposition
during the No-Confidence Motion against Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.
The NFF hoped to strengthen the rights of the Opposition, appoint MP Mahinda
Rajapaksa as Opposition Leader, topple the Government and set aside the 20th
Amendment to the Constitution that is currently underway.

Premajayantha added that during the meeting they had successfully initiated
dialogue with the NFF on how to proceed in respect to mutual political interests,
adding that the 16 looked forward to working with the Joint Opposition.
Upon questioning as to whom the 16 would support during the Presidential
Election, Premajayantha added that it is still too early to consider, given that
there are other elections and Parliamentary deliberations for which the JO would
be required to rally together.

NYT bombshell

The New York Times (NYT) dropped a bombshell in a recently published article
claiming that Sri Lanka was entrapped by China due to various loans obtained by
it during the leadership of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa. It also alleged
that China had funded Rajapaksa’s 2015 Presidential Election campaign.
The article led to various verbal battles and claims from both pro and anti-
Rajapaksa camps.

The Citizens Organizations Collective, which claims a larger portion of bringing the
Yahapalana Government into power in 2015, made a public appeal to President
Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe to direct the
Criminal Investigation Department and the Financial Crimes Investigation Division
(FCID) to urgently investigate a recent allegation that surfaced that China had
provided funding to former President Parliamentarian Mahinda Rajapaksa’s failed
2015 Presidential bid campaign.

Convener of the Collective, Saman Ratnapriya, citing references from a recent

New York Times article, on the issue, including incidents of cheques being sent to
Temple Trees and the involvement of a bank with which the China Merchant Port
Holdings Company Limited kept an account, and a monk also allegedly receiving
money, told Ceylon Today that an inquiry should be conducted into whether
money was thus taken and if so what was done with it.

The FCID should investigate the money laundering aspect, he said. Deputy
Minister Ranjan Ramanayake has already lodged a complaint in this connection.
“The monies must be taken back from Rajapaksa, if it was taken. Former
Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, Ajith Nivard Cabraal and MP Namal
Rajapaksa are giving frivolous answers without replying to the allegations,” he
claimed.

In a reference to the Rajapaksas (specifically Mahinda Rajapaksa and his brother,

Former Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa) and their undemocratic reign, he
warned the public to be wary of attempts made by the Rajapaksas to return to
power, and urged the public to defeat and reject such moves.

The United National Party (UNP) has demanded that China and Sri Lanka should
initiate separate investigations into an alleged US$ 7.6 million scam, involving the
Hambantota Port deal during the previous regime headed by former President
Rajapaksa.
“We strongly request President Maithripala Sirisena to initiate a fresh
investigation into this issue through a Presidential Commission. The Chinese
Government should also investigate this because, their ‘One Road, One Belt’
concept is based on zero tolerance of corruption and because the China Harbour
Company belongs to them,” UNP Parliamentarian Harshana Rajakaruna told
media.

The MP pointed out that the Company was blacklisted in two Asian countries,
namely, Bangladesh and the Philippines, due to bribery allegations.
He also compared the content of the NYT report and issues that had arisen prior
to the Presidential Election of 2015.
“In the villages, we observed Rajapaksa’s party distributing clothes among
villagers, as well as clocks and other gifts. The report clearly reveals those things.
So, we need a clear investigation into this.”

Elsewhere, the National Movement of Web Journalists (NMWJ) challenged the

Government to take necessary legal action against the suspects in the alleged
financial fraud, if it didn’t have any secret deal with the Rajapaksa family.
Chairman of the organization Chaturanga de Alwis said he had lodged a complaint
with the FCID on Friday (29) regarding the US$ 7.6 million fraud which was said to
have occurred in connection with the Hambantota Port deal during the previous
regime.
He added that a Presidential Commission should be appointed as soon as possible
to investigate this issue.

“If the Government is really willing to catch the thieves, this is the most suitable
time to do it. Without delaying, the President can appoint a Presidential
Commission of Investigation to inquire into the issue and reveal the people who
betrayed the country to conduct their election campaigns”.

Meanwhile, local media, quoting Leader of the House Minister Lakshman Kiriella,
reported that the Sri Lankan Government was planning to negotiate with the
Government of the United Arab Emirates on an alleged fund of Rs 1.1 billion
received by President Rajapaksa for his election
campaign.

However, issuing a statement Minister Kiriella’s media unit insisted that the
Minister has never mentioned anything regarding the matter.

From the side of President Rajapaksa, former Governor of the Central Bank, Ajith
Nivard Cabraal refuted claims made in the New York Times article.
Cabraal pointed out that the main thrust of the story that was published in the
NYT was to show that Sri Lanka was forced to surrender some of the assets to
China due to the debt trap it had been placed in.

He said that Sri Lanka had been used in the article to target China, which has
evolved as a threat to the United States in the global arena.
“I can understand why the US is saying it. I think they (US) want to show that
China is going around the world and are trying to take over various countries,
which the West used to do in the past by attacking them,” he said.
“We don’t want to show China in a great light. But Sri Lanka never got into a debt
trap,” he added.

He clarified that Sri Lanka was never in a debt trap under former President
Rajapaksa, and added that the country was managing its debts and resources very
well.
Cabraal also claimed that the writer of the article, Maria Abi-Habib had contacted
him to obtain comments and had interviewed him for her article.
He, however said that none of his views on the said topic was published. He
pointed out that he was quoted on an aspect which had the least relevance to the
main thrust of the article.

“In my interview, I pointed out several facts, including that Sri Lanka had brought
down its debt to GDP ratio down to as much as 71% by the time Rajapaksa
finished his term. There were improvements in the debt situation each year. It
was recognized by the locals, foreign investors, and bodies such as the
International Monetary Fund (IMF). We were clearly on a debt consolidation
path,” he said.
He also explained that it was wrong to claim that Sri Lanka was trapped solely
because of loans provided by China.

“Sri Lanka has borrowed from the US more than China. These loans are in the
form of International Sovereign Bonds, Treasury Bonds, and Treasury Bills which
have had investors from the US and the West. So if at all Sri Lanka was going to
get into trouble, it was not because of the Chinese debt alone, but because of all
the debt,” he pointed out.

Speaking on the claim that China funded Rajapaksa’s presidential campaign,

Cabraal said that they were mere allegations and were not proven. “Why focus on
that when there is proof that the UNP campaigns were funded by those involved
in the Treasury Bonds scam?” he questioned.
Cabraal claimed that the total foreign debt at the time Rajapaksa stepped down
was around USD 26 billion out of which China’s portion was approximately USD 4
to 5 billion.

He also pointed out that it was the current government which gave the port on
lease to China and not Rajapaksa.
“Rajapaksa never wanted to sell or lease the port to any country. If that was what
China wanted, why would it bribe the former President by funding his campaign?”
he asked.
Meanwhile, responding for the first time, to the recently-published article in the
New York Times which alleged that Sri Lanka was placed in a debt trap by China
due to the loans obtained for various development projects, Luo Chong, Chief of
Political Section and also the spokesperson of the Embassy in a statement insisted
the report as a one “full of political prejudice and completely inconsistent with
fact.”
China will oppose any country's interference in the internal affairs of Sri Lanka
and will continue to firmly support the latter's independence, sovereignty and
territorial integrity, the Chinese Embassy in Colombo stressed.

“The Embassy has noticed the New York Times' article published on June 25, as
well as the clarifications and responses by various parties from Sri Lanka,
criticizing it. It is encouraging that all sectors of the Sri Lankan society highly
appreciate China's tremendous support and selfless assistance for ending the civil
war and post-war reconstruction in the Island nation,” Chong has noted.

It was also emphasized that, “despite any interference from a third party, China
would like to work together with Sri Lanka to actively implement the important
consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, and concentrate
unwaveringly on our fixed goals, continuously promote the pragmatic
cooperation under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiatives following the
‘golden rule’ of ‘extensive consultation, joint contribution and shared benefits’, to
better benefit the two countries and the two peoples,” it was further stated.

Meanwhile, former President Rajapaksa said that the report has been filed for
political reasons to tarnish his name and that it had been planted by
interested parties in Sri Lanka.

“The Government spent three years bashing Rajapaksas, and it will continue to do
so in the remaining term as well. The article is completely politically motivated
and baseless. The UNP led Government came up with various allegations during
2015 Presidential Election campaign, they did the same during last Local
Government elections. Only conclusion I could come to, about this NYT report, is
that an election is nearby,” Rajapaksa said when contacted.
While indicating that he is planning on suing the American paper, former
President Rajapaksa however said people will no longer be misguided by such
reports.
“The Government still thinks people could be fooled by stooping to such low
strategies. They will, however, be disillusioned by the next election results as well,
because people cannot be fooled any longer by using the same slogan like
‘Rajapaksa is corrupt’,” he added.

Meanwhile, the office of former President Rajapaksa will issue an official

statement on the matter today.
Posted by Thavam