Minister Lal Kantha owns two luxury houses in Colombo: Chamara

Colombo, June 15 (Daily Mirror) - The joint opposition which came up with a number of fresh allegations against the present government, yesterday said Minister K. D. Lal Kantha owns two luxury houses in Kaduwela and Maharagama.

Opposition MP Chamara Sampath Dassanayake who came up with this allegation during a seminar organized by the joint opposition said Minister Lal Kantha will never stop earning money.

"Lal Kantha was sent to Parliament by the people in the Kandy District with more than 300,000 preferential votes. However, one has to look into what he is up to. He has constructed two new luxury houses in Maharagama and Kaduwela spending millions. Those who were affected by Ditwah should not expect the minister to construct houses for them as he constructs houses for himself only," he said.

Also, he said ministers in this government who pledged not to use new luxury vehicles have gone back on their word and are doing the opposite.

Furthermore, he said the NPP obtained more than 150 seats in Parliament because of a mistake made by many opposition politicians. He said the decision by some opposition MPs not to contest the 2024 General Election led the NPP to obtain more than 150 seats. "This government would have ended up with only 120 seats had these politicians contested the polls. The government would have been toppled by now in such an eventuality," the MP said.

Former MP Patali Champika Ranwaka who came up with another allegation said Ditwah is a man-made disaster rather than a natural disaster. "The first warning from the Department of Meteorology on Ditwah came on November 12. The opening of gates in major reservoirs should have then begun gradually. However, the reservoirs including Kotmale were opened after November 27. The sudden opening of Randenigala resulted in submerging of Mahiyangana for the first time. It is President Anura Kumara Dissanayake who is in charge of Disaster Management and Lal Kantha who is in charge of Mahaweli who are responsible for this disaster. No one can stop the rain but a major disaster would have been averted if decisions to open gates of reservoirs were made at the right time. An order has been given to find evidence against me to send me to jail after I made this disclosure on Ditwah in a TV programme," he said.

Former MP Wajira Abeywardena said the present government does not follow the programme which was agreed upon with the IMF by the Sri Lankan government during the tenure of Ranil Wickremesinghe as the President. "Sri Lanka has to maintain foreign reserves worth $8 billion. This government has failed to do it. Also, he said the theft of dollars 2.5 million is a violation of the Central Bank Amendment Act which stipulates how to settle debts. One will be able to see the consequences of these before long," he said.

MP Dayasiri Jayasekara said the core values of the Sri Lankan people are being destroyed by this government. He said Buddhism is also suffering the same fate. "All opposition parties should get together to save the core values of our people," he also said.

Former Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe who focused on the probe of the Easter Sunday attacks blamed the government for its failure to question former Attorney General Dappula Livera who said there was a conspiracy behind the Easter Sunday attacks. "Mr. Livera talked about a conspiracy behind the Easter Sunday attacks on the day of his retirement. Archbishop of Colombo Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith also went to town with it. However, Livera has not been questioned about his statement to date," he said.