by Shyam Nuwan Ganewatte Courtesy The Island

November 10, 2019, 9:01 pm

President’s Counsel Ali Sabri showing the documents proving that SLPP Presidential Candidate Gotabaya Rajapaksa had given up his US citizenship.Pic by Thushara Atapattu

A panel of senior lawyers led by President’s Counsel Ali Sabri yesterday produced documents pertaining to SLPP Presidential candidate Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s renunciation of his US citizenship.

Addressing the media at Kingsbury Hotel in Colombo, they produced the original documents provided to Rajapaksa by the US State Department to the effect that he is no longer an American citizen.

Zabri said that the issue had been politicised by a group political opponents of Rajapaksa to mislead the public in view of their impending defeat at the Nov 16 presidential election. The matter had been challenged before the Court of Appeal with the same purpose but the court had thrown out the petition. “If they had any further doubt they could have gone to the Supreme Court. They knew the truth that Gotabaya Rajapaksa had renounced his US citizenship properly. So, they did not go to the Supreme Court and waited till now to mislead the people. There is a monk staging a protest at the Independence Square demanding to know the truth. He could have gone before his leaders Ranil Wickremesinghe or Sajith Premadasa who has very cordial links with the US Embassy and get the matter verified without wasting the time of others.”

Sabri said that when Rajapaksa renounced his US citizenship the State Department had canceled the latter’s travel documents. He presented them to the media.

Kushan de Alwis, PC, said that he had personally checked all documents pertaining to the issue and Rajapaksa had no barrier to get elected and be sworn in as the next President of the country.

Mayura Gunawansa, PC, Razik Zarook, PC, and an attorney-at-law practising in the US Prof. Gamini Gunawardena also informed the media that Rajapaksa had renounced his US citizenship.