Right of Reply Ranting of a so-called ‘Political Activist’

I refer to the article by Amrit Muthukumaru titled “UNP politburo set up for internecine war between Sajith, Naveen?” The article has a monotonous repetition of what has been written before by him.   

In the above article, the writer does not seem to know or chose not to know that the politburo was appointed by a ‘secret ballot’ of the UNP Working Committee and Parliamentary Committee. He says the grassroot members should have a say in the party. There are MPs who represent rural areas in these two committees. They represent, inter alia, farming, fishing, estate and rural industrial communities. Does Mr. Muthukumaru expect the farmer and fisherman to come to ‘Sirikotha’ and offer advice? Their inputs are conveyed through the MPs. The working committee consists of members who represent teachers, academics, lawyers, professionals and so forth. Ranil Wickremesinghe had no hand in the composition of this politburo. 

Mr. Muthukumaru was strangely silent during the days of the deadly ‘white vans.’ He never wrote about PEPs, Greek Bond scams, Stock Market ‘Pump & Dump’ manipulations, hedging deals, SriLankan Airlines run to the ground, piling up billions in debt and the former President’s brother-in-law as chairman, running wild with his harem

Mr. Muthukumaru is an economist by profession, yet the Daily Mirror has thought it fit to grant him the opportunity to don the cloak of an expert on bonds, a Constitutional expert and now a political expert. What a jack of all trades! 

He writes to the Central Bank Governor and demands to know what action had been taken regarding the Central Bank employees named in the Bond report. I am sure the Central Bank has carried out its own domestic inquiries and appropriate action would have been taken. The governor is not bound to reply to Mr. Muthukumaru’s letters on internal inquiries. He is a busy man unlike the inquirer. 

He also appears to be on a witch-hunt against Politically Exposed Persons - PEPs. This is a term describing someone who has been entrusted with a prominent public function. He admits that the Central Bank has informed him that there was nothing to prevent a PEP from being a bank director.

But this activist is not prepared to accept the ruling. Instead he keeps on raving about a minister’s son-in-law who is on the board of a bank. 

He even wrote an article on what questions the AG should ask the Prime Minister when he gave evidence at the Bond Commission. What audacity! This is contempt of a Presidential Court. However, Mr. Muthukumaru is no stranger to courts. He wants the PM to apologise to the 6.2 million people who were “duped by reneging on promises given during the presidential elections.” Here again, Mr. Muthukumaru is used to apologising in court! 

He then challenges the constitutionality of 19A. If not for 19A, the President would have run riot. Now Mr. Muthukumaru says it should be passed by a two-thirds majority in Parliament and he demands a referendum. 19A was challenged in the Supreme Court which made a few changes. It was then passed in Parliament by 215-0 with 9 abstentions. If this is not a two-thirds majority, I wonder what is! 

Mr. Muthukumaru was strangely silent during the days of the deadly ‘white vans.’ He never wrote about PEPs, Greek Bond scams, Stock Market ‘Pump & Dump’ manipulations, hedging deals, SriLankan Airlines run to the ground, piling up billions in debt and the former President’s brother-in-law as chairman, running wild with his harem; why was he quiet when SL squandered millions on abortive attempts to have the Commonwealth Games in Hambantota? He rants over the Yahapalanaya Government but it is this very same Yahapalanaya which permits him to write the way he does with no holds barred! 

He seems to be in competition with another activist who together seems to have taken it upon themselves to direct the government on how its affairs should be run. 
-Outsider-