(Lanka-e-News -29.Jan.2016, 11.30PM) The utterances made regarding the appointment of the Attorney General by Minister Rajitha Senaratne the cabinet spokesman at the media briefing to announce the cabinet decisions held yesterday(28) , created a stir in the AG’s department resulting in Rajtha becoming the target of scathing criticism.
Rajitha said , the AG’s department is now in a worse state than it was during the Rajapakse era, and to fill the vacancy that has arisen now , an Attorney General shall be appointed from outside rather than from within the AG’s department.
These two utterances provoked the officers of the AG’s department so much so that they have threatened to go on strike – for the first time in Sri Lanka ‘s history ! if Rajitha does not withdraw his statements. In other words they would not appear on behalf of the State in litigations.
During the Rajapakse era , after the AG’s department was brought under the control of president Mahinda Rajapakse, even the cases that were being heard against his stooges and henchmen were withdrawn. The two most infamously famous instances were : the withdrawal of the case against Kesbewa Chandana Kathriarachi and the case of child sex abuse against Duminda .R .Silva . There were also many other instances too. But now the AG’s department has been taken out from the executive powers of the president and is currently an independent State Institution .While this is a consequence of the welcome policies followed by the government of good governance, the cabinet spokesman saying the AG’s department was better under the Rajapakse era is a most obnoxious stupid statement .
The second nonsensical utterance is that an AG shall be appointed from outside ..
In an independent State department , when the chief goes on retirement , it is the next in seniority who should replace him. To say an outsider shall be appointed implies that Establishment is being politicized.
The AG Yuvanjana has now gone on retirement , and it is Suhada Gamlath the next in seniority who has been appointed to act for him.Though it is no secret that he is pro Rajapakse , yet currently he is the most senior next to Yuvanjana.
Rajapakses were ruling for nearly 20 years , and therefore in any government establishment those in the lower rungs being pro Rajapakse is something that cannot be averted. No matter who Suhada Gamlath is , if he who is next in seniority is not made the AG ,there is no doubt it can create a stormy controversy within the AG’s department .
If an outsider is appointed no matter his seniority as a lawyer , it will constitute a political appointment. It is in this backdrop Rajitha made his obnoxious utterances that an outsider shall be appointed. What he said are therefore misleading and erroneous because that appointment is made officially by the constitutional council appointed under the 19 th amendment.
Let it be made clear that Rajitha is not a representative of the constitutiional council. If Suhada Gamlath is not to be made AG because he is pro Rajapakse , then by the same token Rajitha Senaratne too who heard the case to pack ex chief justice Shiranee Bandaranaike off to her home , also cannot hoid the post of Cabinet spokesman under the government of good governance.
Hence , the most sensible thing to do instead of beating about the bush is and indulging in pompous bombasts , rather than appointing someone other than Gamlath and compounding the confusion further , appoint Gamlath as the attorney General and introduce methodologies to ensure he does not indulge in malpractices even if he is pro Rajapakse.
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by (2016-01-30 19:31:32)
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