Laws are now in place to root out corruption: President

Colombo, August 26 (Daily Mirror) - Whilst highlighting that eradicating corruption during the Yahapalana government was a success to some extent while there were failures at the same time, President Ranil Wickremesinghe said over the weekend that laws are now in place to rectify the shortcomings.

President Wickremesinghe who met lawyers during the weekend compared tackling corruption to catching mice, stating that a toothless cat cannot catch mice. “You need a cat with sharp teeth to catch mice. Criticizing me for inadequacies beyond my control is useless,” he said while emphasising that effective action against corruption requires not just criticism but the right tools and capabilities.

“I should also address the ongoing discussions about tackling corruption. Back in 2015, various parties united to support former President Maithripala Sirisena's candidacy. After his victory, although all parties were invited to join the government, the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) was designated to stay in the opposition. The Tamil parties pushed for political solutions, while the JVP was given the responsibility of addressing corruption. J.C. Weliamuna strongly advocated for taking action, while the JVP also expressed their commitment to the cause. Weliamuna led these efforts from the Presidential Secretariat, and Ravi Seneviratne and Ravi Waidyalankara were appointed by the police. The Bribery Commission and an Anti-Corruption Secretariat were established, with funding provided by the Prime Minister's Office. Ananda Wijepala from the JVP was appointed to lead the initiative, despite not being a police officer or lawyer. He managed 400 cases—some met with success, others did not,” he said.

“My role was simply to ensure the necessary funding was in place. To catch mice, you need a cat with teeth. If the cat is toothless, that’s not my concern. I stand firmly against corruption, but our legal framework had significant shortcomings that were not adequately addressed. However, since I became President, we have worked with the International Monetary Fund to draft both an anti-corruption law and legislation targeting property acquired through criminal activity. These laws are now being implemented, with support from the World Bank for training the necessary human resources. Once fully enforced, Sri Lanka will have the strongest anti-corruption laws in South Asia. This is why we must focus on the future of our country. To that end, we have introduced the Economic Transformation Act. After the election, we need to reassess and continue moving forward,” he added.