By Maheesha Mudugamuwa
Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa yesterday said that the government wanted to take political revenge from him by holding inquiries on false and fabricated corruption charges which were actually not related to him.
After appearing before the Presidential Commission of Inquiry Probing Serious Acts of Corruption at the BMICH, Rajapaksa told The Island that the charges were brought against him only to discredit him.
The proceedings at the commission were postponed till today due to the objections raised to the appointment of High Court judges to the commission. According to the lawyers of former President, the President did not have legal authority to appoint High Court judges to a Presidential Commission President Rajapaksa was represented by Counsel Gamini Marapana, PC, Jayantha Weerasinghe, PC, W. Dayaratne, PC, Ganesh Dharmawardene, Navin Marapana, Sampath Mendis, Wijesiri Ambawatte, Chaminda Kularatne and Namal Rajapaksa.
However, former UPFA General Secretary Minister Susil Premajayantha said that the probe into some financial commitment about the payment and the non-payment for the advertising on ITN was only an inquiry.
“The counsel appearing for those summoned by the commission raised objections. So, tomorrow a ruling will be given on the preliminary objection.”
He said: “The government has done nothing during the last nine months except taking revenge from its opponents. They are probing war heroes who liberated the country from the clutches of terrorists and created a peaceful environment for all of us to live without fear. It is because of those valiant men and women that democracy has been revived in the North and the East and children in those parts of the country are going to school without fearing abductions by the LTTE. People are free to vote and do not have to pay protection money to terrorists. They can live like free men and women. Those who combated terrorism must not be harassed and humiliated in this despicable manner. All four commanders of forces who were instrumental in defeating terrorism are being probed.”
Rajapaksa said that the government had summoned him before the commission to probe an alleged financial offence regarding some advertisements telecast on ITN. “I was no way responsible for that.”
Meanwhile, Former President Rajapaksa’s Media Secretary Rohan Welivita said that summoning the former president before the Commission to Inquire into serious corruption was an attempt to convey to the public the impression that the former president had engaged in wrongdoing.
Welivita said former President Rajapaksa had contested the January 2015 presidential election as the candidate of the UPFA and, therefore, the presidential candidate of a major political party couldn’t supervise the advertising campaign carried out on his behalf.
He added that the campaign advertisements had been given to media organisations by the advertising firm retained by the candidate’s political party and the candidate or even his political party very often had no direct contact with the media organisations over advertising.
Among the matters under investigation by the commission are the appointment of Anura Siriwardene as Chairman/ CEO of ITN at a time when the position was not vacant, alleged financial loss caused due to an advertising firm by the name of ‘Media Factory’ not paying ITN for advertisement, a financial loss of Rs. 2.4 million allegedly caused by an advertising firm by the name of ‘Special Solutions’ which did not pay its dues to ITN, the returning of up-front payment received for advertisements promoting presidential election candidate Maithripala Sirisena and the loss the ITN incurred as a result.
Welivita said that the appointment of former ITN Chairman Siriwardena had been made by the Secretary to the Treasury as the Treasury owned the majority of the shares of ITN and it had been made after the former chairman had left that position.
Regarding the advertisements, Welivita added that ITN had issued a letter dated 27 January 2015 claiming what was due to them and that the Media Factory had settled the outstanding amount in full and the ITN had under signature accepted that the payment had been received.
Regarding the non-airing of advertisements of President Sirisena who was then presidential candidate, Welivita said that it was an internal administrative matter of ITN.
Courtesy:The Island