PCoI requested AG to question PM

The PCoI Chairman Justice K.T Chithrasiri reading out a statement prior to Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe's evidence said the Attorney General was requested to be present at the Commission to lead the team of officials of the Attorney General's Department.

“We wish to thank the Hon. Attorney General for, at our request, appearing before us today and leading his team of officers. This Commission of Inquiry made that request to the Hon. Attorney General because we are of the view that, it is proper and appropriate for the Hon. Attorney General himself to be present before us and lead his team of officers on an occasion when the Hon. Prime Minister of the Republic appears before this Commission of Inquiry,” the Commission said.

Following is the full statement read out by the commission:

This Commission of Inquiry would like to thank the Hon. Prime Minister for appearing today and assisting us by providing some Clarifications with regard to the Answers furnished in reply to the 28 Questions framed by the Commission of Inquiry and the 20 further Questions framed by the officers of the Hon. Attorney General’s Department who are assisting this Commission of Inquiry.

We would also like to thank the Hon. Prime Minister for the detailed Answers provided to all these 48 Questions and Further Questions.

In this connection, we wish to state that, in view of the Hon. Prime Minister’s high office and the many demands on his time, this Commission of Inquiry considered it proper and appropriate that, Answers to the Questions we have, be first provided by the Hon. Prime Minister in the form of Affidavits rather than by way of time-consuming Oral Evidence and that, thereafter, any Clarifications that may be necessary, could be obtained within a short space of time.

These Affidavits will be part and parcel of the Proceedings of this Commission of Inquiry and will be annexed, along with all other Proceedings and Documents, to our Report.

We also wish to make it clear that, this Commission of Inquiry requested the Hon. Prime Minister to appear before us today and the Hon. Prime Minister readily agreed to do so. The question of a need to compel the Hon Prime Minister to appear before us, did not arise.

Next, we wish to thank the Hon. Attorney General for, at our request, appearing before us today and leading his team of officers. This Commission of Inquiry made that request to the Hon. Attorney General because we are of the view that, it is proper and appropriate for the Hon. Attorney General himself to be present before us and lead his team of officers on an occasion when the Hon. Prime Minister of the Republic appears before this Commission of Inquiry.

The Commission of Inquiry will now proceed to ask, from the Hon. Prime Minster, Questions with regard to the Clarifications we consider necessary. In this connection, as we stated earlier, we already have been provided with detailed Answers to the 48 Questions and Further Questions forwarded to the Hon. Prime Minister. Therefore, these Questions are only to obtain Clarifications which are needed in respect of a few of those Answers.

Once this Commission of Inquiry has obtained the Clarifications we consider necessary, we will also give the Hon. Attorney General and opportunity to obtain any further Clarifications he may consider necessary in pursuance of his functions as an officer assisting this Commission of Inquiry under Section 23 of the Commission of Inquiry Act.