Kiriella accuses Speaker of “underhand games” Selection of Chairman of Public Finance Committee

The SJB on Thursday accused Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena of “playing underhand games with parliamentary appointments” paving the way for disastrous outcomes.

Chief Opposition Whip and Kandy District MP Lakshman Kiriella said the Speaker suspended Standing Orders and got the Public Finance Committee Chairman’s post for the government.

“According to the Standing Orders that position should have been gone to the Opposition. We proposed the name of Dr Harsha de Silva, who is an economist. The Speaker suspended the Standing Orders while we were not in the House and enabled a government member to be appointed for the post reserved for the opposition. If the opposition had that post, some of these economic problems would have been averted. This is a shame. The Speaker too is responsible for the present crisis,” Kiriella said.

Speaker: No I am not responsible for the crisis. How could you accuse me of responsibility? The appointment had been made after the entire House agreed on it. I had nothing to do with it. You should have been present in the House. What can I do if you were absent?

Kiriella: According to the Standing Order 121/1, the post of Chairman of the Public Finance Committee should be given to the opposition. You suspended the Standing Orders. You played underhand games. This is a shame. You must rectify this error immediately. We have been demanding this for a year now. You have not yet corrected the error. People took to the streets, they burnt the houses of MPs. You still have not learnt a lesson. You should be impartial. You are playing politics. You are still the Chairman of the Weligama Development Council. You do politics there. You do second class work while sitting there. Shame on you.

Speaker: You can raise this at the party leaders meeting and can get another appointed to that post.

Dr Harsha de Silva: My name was proposed for the post. Then there were subsequent events. Now they have been identified as mistakes. You can correct them. Why do we delay to correct this mistake. The Prime Minister too has accepted that this post should go to the opposition.