AKD has used state resources to attend his party function in U.S. and Japan: Opposition alleges

By Yohan Perera   

Opposition MP S.M. Marikkar claimed yesterday that President Anura Kumara Dissanayake (AKD) has used state resources to address Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) sessions during his visits to the U.S. and Japan, despite a similar allegation being made against former President Ranil Wickremesinghe.   

 “The government accused former President Ranil Wickremesinghe of using state resources on a private visit abroad during his tenure. Didn’t President Dissanayake take security men for the part sessions?” Marikkar questioned.    The Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) MP went on to suggest that if legal action was to be taken against Wickremesinghe, it should have been over more serious allegations rather than his foreign trip.   

“If the former President had been charged over the Batalanda incident or the Central Bank bond scam, that would have been one thing. However, jailing him over something so petty raises questions,” he added.   

When asked why he appeared to be defending Wickremesinghe, Marikkar denied doing so, asserting that he was not attempting to absolve the former President of previous accusations.   

“I am not defending him, nor am I prepared to wash away the allegations we in the SJB have made against him in the past. There’s a difference between forming a united opposition platform and abandoning our principles for political gain,” he said.   “Let me be clear—I won’t back down from the claims we’ve made against former leaders just to form alliances and grab power,” he stressed.   

Marikkar also noted the political contradictions of the past, saying, “It was Ranil who taught us to call former President Mahinda Rajapaksa a thief, and Rajapaksa, in turn, called his rival a thief as well.”    Revealing a personal anecdote, Marikkar stated that Wickremesinghe had offered him a ministerial position after assuming the presidency in 2022, but he turned it down. “I declined the offer because I’m not willing to compromise my principles for positions,” he affirmed.

Commenting further on internal political dynamics, he said, “There’s a difference between the unions of the UNP and SJB cooperating and all opposition parties forming a political alliance. We are not ready to betray our policies just to win power.”