Speaker approves putting Fonseka’s privilege issue before ethics committee

Speaker Karu Jayasuriya 

Speaker Karu Jayasuriya informed Parliament yesterday that the issue raised by United National Party (UNP) lawmaker Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka, requesting to re-establish his pension, allowances, and other privileges, can be brought before the Committee on Ethics and Privileges.

Raising a privilege issue on Wednesday in Parliament, Fonseka challenged that military tribunals held during the tenure of the former Government were responsible for cancelling his pension, due after his military service. Fonseka on Wednesday recapped his career and entry into politics as the Common Candidate in 2010, and the challenges he faced afterwards. He pointed out that even though he was elected to Parliament in the subsequent General Elections, he nonetheless lost his civic rights in the conviction and jail term that followed.  Fonseka was subsequently cleared from all charges. “The current Government, which came into power on 8 January 2015, cleared my name of all charges. I was the victim of the cruellest revenge in history. I was deprived of my salary, allowances, and other privileges. I request the Speaker to re-establish what was taken away from me,” he told Parliament on Wednesday. Fonseka supported Common Candidate Maithripala Sirisena in the 2015 Presidential Election and following his victory, the newly appointed President Sirisena gave Fonseka a full pardon, reinstating his civil rights, military rank, and decorations.

Later, he was promoted to the newly created rank of Field Marshal on 22 March 2015, becoming the first Sri Lankan Army officer to be promoted to the rank. On 9 February 2016, he was appointed to Parliament as a National List candidate and served in the Cabinet of Ministers from 2016 to 2018 as Minister of Regional Development, and thereafter as Minister of Wildlife and Sustainable Development until the 2018 Constitutional Crisis. (AH)