Prez won’t let serving intel officers appear before PSC Wijeyadasa urges Karu to halt proceedings
Posted on June 7th, 2019

Courtesy The Island

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Wijeyadasa

President Maithripala Sirisena, who is also the Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces, yesterday, declared that he wouldn’t allow any serving intelligence officer to appear before Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) probing Easter Sunday attacks.

The assurance was given to a group of senior policemen at the Presidential Secretariat.

A Presidential Secretariat official told The Island that President Sirisena had said that he would take the responsibility for preventing intelligence officers from appearing before the PSC. Only those who retired or removed from service have so far appeared before the PSC.

The PSC has so far met thrice. Defence Secretary Gen. Shantha Kottegoda, retd, DIG Sisira Mendis, retd, interdicted DIG Nalaka Silva, suspended IGP Pujith Jayasundera and former Defence Secretary Hemasiri Fernando have given evidence before the PSC.

The presidential announcement came close on the heels of former Justice Minister Dr. Wijeyadasa Rajapaksa, MP, urging Speaker Karu Jayasuriya to halt PSC probe as it violated Official Secret Act.

President told that police said that the disclosure of state intelligence secrets before the media couldn’t be accepted under any circumstances.

President’s Counsel Rajapakse yesterday told The Island that he had explained to Speaker Jayasuriya, in writing, on Thursday, June 06, how the PSC on Easter attacks violated the second, seventh, eighth, ninth and tenth clauses of the Official Secrets Act.

Rajapakse also pointed out that members of the PSC had no right to receive confidential information relating to national security.

The PSC consists of Ananda Kumarasiri (Chairman), Dr. Jayampathy Wickremaratne, Rauff Hakeem, M.A. Sumanthiran, Dr. Rajitha Senaratne, Ravi Karunanayake, Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa and Prof. Ashu Marasinghe.

The UPFA/JO boycotts the PSC. In his letter, Rajapakse has emphasised that the PSC could not obtain confidential information as per the parliamentary privileges conferred by the Constitution.

He has said that PSC probe cannot continue as five cases filed in respect of April 21 attacks were being heard in the Supreme Court, in addition to Presidential Commission of Inquiry probing the alleged security lapses.

According to the former Justice Minister, President Maithripala Sirisena, too, violated the Constitution by purposely allowing the revelation of confidential information in or outside parliament. (SF)

One Response to “Prez won’t let serving intel officers appear before PSC Wijeyadasa urges Karu to halt proceedings”

  1. Randeniyage Says:

    Wijedasa has been hired long time ago.
    He was the first to declare “Sri Lanka is not a Sinhala-Buddhist country” back in 2015-2016 period.

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