“President is seeking to centralize all country’s powers and funds to himself and family” says UNP

Photo: Awaiting for power

(Novemebr, 11, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) Right from the beginning, President Rajapakse has been doing one thing properly, that is centralising all the country’s powers and funds to himself and his family. Utilising and appropriating Treasury funds without Parliamentary approval, ignoring the position that Parliament is the supreme representative body and, only it is vested with such powers, said UNP Parliamentarian John Ameratunge.

He said, even the 2008 budget confirms only this truth. While it offers nothing to improve the quality of the common man or to alleviate their acute sufferings created by this Govt., the President has made subtle attempts by proposing the establishment of a Projects Management Department (PMD). To bring under his control all Ministry Tenders and agreements signed.

Already, the President and his brothers have brought 75% of the Ministries under their control, and when this is implemented total control over tenders, projects and agreements, total control would be the disastrous result, to the detriment of the country, he added.

When the UNP handed over the reins of power to the People’s alliance in 2004, the loan component was Rs. 500 billion. Now it has ‘jumped’ to Rs. 2000 billion clearly demonstrating the Mahinda Chintana’s ‘fabulous’ fiscal bungling ! He asserted

With countless charges of corruption already tainting the Rajapakse Bros. Co., unprecedented in the history of Sri Lanka (no other Govt. in Sri Lanka’s history faced such charges!), and the colossal MIG 27 alleged fraud casting a long shadow over the Rajapakse Bros., with Basil Rajapakse directly accused, should bring home to the people what sordid aims are encapsulated in the new proposal - the PMD, of President Rajapakse, he exhorted.