Opposition faults Govt. over method of presenting Emergency Regulations

• Insists MP linked to Defence, Leader of the House, or Chief Whip should present 
• State Minister of Defence summoned to Parliament to present Motion  

By Ashwin Hemmathagama – Our Lobby Correspondent

Deputy Minister of Development Strategies and International Trade Nalin Bandara moving the Motion to extend the Emergency Regulations, deviating from Parliamentary traditions, attracted heavy criticism from the Opposition.

Raising a point of order, United Peoples’ Freedom Alliance (UPFA) lawmaker Mahinda Amaraweera proposed the Speaker’s intervention to uphold Parliamentary traditions. “It is the Parliamentary tradition that the Emergency Regulation Motion is moved by the Minister of Defence, the Deputy Minister or State Minister of Defence, the Leader of the House, or the Chief Government Whip in the Parliament. At the least a Cabinet Minister should move it. The Speaker should not allow the House to be degraded,” he said.

Unable to reject the point of order, Minister of Public Enterprise, Kandyan Heritage and Kandy Development and Leader of the House of Parliament Lakshman Kiriella endorsed the fact that traditionally the Defence Minister or his deputy should move the motion. 

“I moved the Motion, but the tradition is the Minister or the Deputy Minister must move it. The State Minister should have been here. During the war, I can remember Minister Ranjan Wijeratne present in Parliament at all times. Today, I presented the Motion as the Leader of the House,” he held.

Meanwhile, Speaker Karu Jayasuriya summoned Non-Cabinet Minister of Mass Media and State Minister of Defence Ruwan Wijewardene to take part in the debate.

JVP lawmaker Anura Dissanayake, who continued to criticise the untraditional move, wanted the Government to resign. “Prime Minister, the Deputy Minister of Defence, or the Minister of Defence used to explain the steps taken to secure public safety and the requirement to extend it. But we don’t have the Minister of Defence or the State Minister of Defence present here in Parliament while we are engaged in the debate. They should be here to reply to our questions. President tells all kinds of stories out in public, but he should be here to answer us. This shows nothing but the lack of interest the Government has in public safety,” he added. 

In a short while, State Minister Wijewardene arrived in the Chamber to take part in the debate. (AH)