By Harischandra Gunaratna
Former External Affairs Minister of the UPFA government, Prof. G. L. Peiris yesterday accused Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe of being the mastermind of the bond scam and demanded his resignation forthwith.
“If he is not resigning on his own accord, the President has the full powers to remove him, but the former is dodging the issue,” Prof. Peiris said.
“Wickremesinghe is the mastermind of the whole scam and he should be dealt with according to the law.”
Addressing a news conference at the “Vajirashramaya” at Borella organised by the Economic Research Unit of the Joint Opposition, Prof. Peiris predicted that no proper investigation would be held into the bond scam as long as Ranil Wickremesinghe remained the Prime Minister.
He said that if the Cabinet of Ministers had any conscience they should resign.
He said the Prime Minister had made frantic attempts to exonerate former
Central Bank Governor Arjuna Mahendran from wrongdoing.
Right along Wickremesinghe had been insistent on appointing Mahendran to the top post at the Central Bank knowing well that he could not be appointed to the office according to the Constitution of Sri Lanka as Mahendran was not a citizen of this country, Prof. Peiris said. “It is only an arbitrary decision and a contravention of the Monetary Act.”
Prof. Peiris said Ranil had not taken up for debate in Parliament the previous COPE report presented by its then Chairman and astute politician D.E.W. Gunasekera.
Former CB Governor Mahendran, who suddenly left the country should be arrested at the Bandaranaike International Airport if he returned, said Prof. Peiris.
“Wickremesinghe insisted that Mahendran be reappointed CB Governor for a second term. Failing to achieve that objective later he invited Mahendran to Temple Trees and gave Mahendran another top job.”
Former Minister Bandula Gunawardena said the profits Mahendran and his family had realised from the deal was over ten billion rupees.
Mahendran had been given a top post where he had to deal with the proposed highways and there was reliable information that Mahendran was planning to buy a development bank.
Courtesy:The Island