BY Ruwani Fonseka
Now that the Supreme Court has determined that former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, former Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, former Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa (all brothers), the former governors of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka W.D Lakshman and Ajith Nivard Cabraal, former Treasury Secretary S.R. Attygala, and former Secretary of the President Dr P.B. Jayasundera violated the public trust and breached Article 12, paragraph 1, of the Constitution, and it is now up to the Attorney General to act on behalf of the citizens of Sri Lanka and ensure that justice is served to the culprits, says Prof Mahim Mendis, lecturer from the Sri Lanka Open University.
Speaking to The Newsdesk today (08), Prof Mendis stated that it was the fundamental right of all citizens of Sri Lanka to know that the 9 individuals who were found guilty, and is also punished for their wrongdoings.
“The Supreme Court has determined that the Rajapaksa brothers, along with their merry clan, has indeed brought upon this economic crisis into Sri Lanka. The petition was filed in courts by myself (Prof Mahim Mendis), Dr Mavis Moraes and Dr Athula Samarakoon (FCFR 195), and the group of 9 was found guilty. The petitioners have not stated that they was any form of compensation in their petition. But, ethically, the Attorney General should now take this matter up and punish the wrongdoers. It is because of them that this country is in this state,” said Prof Mendis.
When further inquired whether the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) will take measures to ensure justice is served to the culprits when the party comes to power, Prof Mendis stated that the SJB has already proven themselves by raising the prime issues and taking legal action.
“Some politicians say they have truck loads of evidence against the culprits, and if they come to power, only then will they reveal everything. The SJB is not going to wait until we come to power. We do the right thing by taking prime matters up legally and serving the nation. Those parties that say that they will only reveal information once they come to power are power hungry,” said Prof Mendis.
He further noted that under the current Hover and President, justice will not prevail.
“Ranil Wickremesinghe, who is now dubbed as Ranil Rajapaksa, is not going to serve justice to the wrongdoers. Why? Because he knows that he can’t do anything. He was never elected into parliament, he was rejected by the people of this nation. He somehow sneaked his way into parliament and then presidency. He will never allow anything to happen to the Rajapaksa’s,” he noted.
Furthermore, Prof Mendis stated that a petition is currently being circulated amongst people who are demanding that the legal system in Sri Lanka is transparent and that a punishment must be served to the 9 individuals who have been found guilty.
