Chichi’s rocket and Harini

Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya’s response in Parliament to SLPP MP D.V. Chanaka’s question over the controversial SupremeSAT project – which launched a communication satellite in November 2012 – and subsequent statements by Trade and Commerce Minister Wasantha Samarasinghe caused uproar and once again called into question the credibility of Government leaders’ official remarks. 

During the contentious reply, the premier mentioned that no public funds were invested in the controversial venture. Also, she informed the legislature that SupremeSAT mission, according to the information provided by the BOI, earned Rs. 343.9 billion over a period of seven and a half years from 2016 to June 2023 

Before assuming power, the NPP politicians used to ridicule the rocket that was sent into the airspace, for which Rohitha Rajapaksa (whose nickname is Chichi) – the youngest son of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa – was said to have played a pivotal role. However, although people are referring to a rocket, it needs to be clarified that the object which is under scrutiny is the communication satellite named SupremeSAT-1, which was deployed by SupremeSAT Ltd. in partnership with China Great Wall Industry Corporation. The former president’s son was the Technical Director of the initiative.

SupremeSAT was often portrayed by opposition politicians as a prime illustration of the rampant wastage of public funds committed during the Rajapaksa era to satisfy the personal fantasies of the former President’s offspring in manifestation of extreme nepotism, which the Mahinda Rajapaksa administration was legendarily synonymous for. 

Harini’s response delighted the Rajapaksa camp. The sympathisers of the SLPP depicted the Prime Minister’s answer as a firm repudiation of all the brickbats thrown at the Rajapaksa family over the hotly debated communication satellite by the NPP/JVP politicians for years. They even used the premier’s response to cast doubts about the basis of even other accusations of wrongdoing levelled at Rajapaksas by the NPP-allied groups. 

In the aftermath of Harini’s statement, further confusion emerged over the hotly debated satellite. Wasantha Samarasinghe in the Parliament contradicted the Prime Minister and stated she had been misled by the BOI. He pointed out the income earned by the company was only Rs. 343.9 million and not 343.9 billion as claimed by Harini. The Minister also claimed there were no financial records available after 2015, raising question marks about its transparency. It is unclear why the corrective statement was not made by Harini herself. Another point of contention is the suitability of Harini answering a question related to the BOI, which comes under the purview of the Ministry of Finance, Planning, and Economic Development. Hence, it could have been handled by Deputy Minister Prof. Anil Jayantha. 

Meanwhile, politicians in the Government have begun to question the conduct of the BOI. Few insinuated the current BOI Director General was partial to D.V. Chanaka because it was the latter who recommended the former to the post of Acting Director General in 2022 as the then State Minister of Aviation and Export Zone Development. Reportedly, top State officials are currently mulling the possibility of taking actions against the relevant BOI official responsible for providing the purportedly inaccurate details.

In the course of the puzzling saga, once again the conduct and capacity of the Prime Minister came under spotlight. According to the Daily FT Columnist D.B.S. Jeyaraj, she had mixed up millions with billions. Some sarcastically murmured the PhD recipient from Edinburgh University is challenged by arithmetic. Others criticised her for not vetting the data given by the BOI.

Given the humiliation the Government had to undergo due to Harini’s gaffe, the tenability of her premiership was challenged, and rumours began to spread she was going to be replaced. But Bimal Ratnayake dispelled such tales and asserted Harini is an asset to the Government. Nevertheless, going forward, it is hoped she will remain an asset and not a liability.