By Yohan Perera and Ajith Siriwardana

Parliament - (Daily Mirror) - The Sectoral Oversight Committee on National Security has decided to regulate private security firms and has requested the Defence Ministry prepare a system to this effect.

The decision on regulating private security firms came up at the oversight committee meeting when members of the committee highlighted that the public is oppressed by those who get private security guards to go along with them when they travel. The senior police officers said that legally, the police cannot intervene in the personal security of a person. However, the committee pointed out that since the personnel of those private security services use weapons, certain regulations have to come into place. The Committee decided to request the Ministry of Defence to prepare criteria for regulating private security services.

The committee also discussed the underworld activities, which have become a grave social ill. Accordingly, it revealed that certain persons in the service of the armed forces show an increase in resorting to committing crimes. The Inspector General of Police pointed out that there is some weakness in the identification of criminals. The IGP further commented that if there are competent OICs to identify criminals in their areas, crimes can be prevented, therefore attention has been paid to identify competent police OICs and send them to the respective areas for service.

The committee focused on drug trafficking, where the officials pointed out that the drug traffickers are distributing drugs among school children. They said preventing drugs from entering the country should be given priority. The committee also discussed the need for strict enforcement of laws, such as the confiscation of property of drug traffickers.

The chairman pointed out that the country loses a large number of lives due to road accidents. The chairman recalled that 29,000 war heroes died in the 30-year war in Sri Lanka, and 27,000 people died in road accidents in the last 10 years alone. Accordingly, the Chairman instructed the purchase of necessary equipment as soon as possible to identify those who drive under the influence of drugs and to arrest them on the spot.

It was revealed that there has been an increase in robberies in Sri Lanka and most of them happen due to the carelessness of people. The police stressed that it is very important for people to pay more attention to their houses, buildings and other properties.

MPs Rauff Hakeem, Chandima Weerakkody, Channa Jayasumana, Charles Nirmalanathan, Pradeep Undugoda, (Major) Sudarshana Denipitiya, officials including the Secretary to the Ministry of Public Security and the Inspector General of Police (IGP) were present