NPP rules out need to evaluate educational qualifications of members Govt. stands by its MPs

• President Anura Kumara Dissanayake has no intention of evaluating the qualifications of his MPs  
• Following allegations over the qualifications of Deputy  Speaker Dr. Rizvie Salih and Energy Minister Kumara Jayakody, a senior  Minister said that both individuals held the required qualifications  
• President informs his close confidantes that the recent allegations should not hinder the work of the government  
• A senior NPP MP says Ranwala’s incident was ‘most unfortunate’ with immediate measures taken to rectify the situation  
• President orders all 158 MPs to be present for all parliamentary sittings even in the coming New Year  

By JAMILA HUSAIN  

The NPP government which is now a little over a month old  has in recent weeks faced criticism over some of its members allegedly  publicising fake doctor titles, receiving much flak on social media and  among the citizens.   

A government that came in following a landslide victory  faced a severe blow last week when Speaker of Parliament, Ashoka Ranwala  had to step down after he failed to prove his educational  qualifications. In a statement, Ranwala said he had not lied about his  qualifications but since he could not prove it presently, he had decided  to step down from the post.   

Following his resignation, there is presently a debate  ongoing on social media over the qualifications of some other NPP MPs as  well.   

The government however remains steadfast and says they will  not allow this incident to hamper its ongoing work. A senior NPP  Minister told the Daily Mirror that while Ranwala’s incident was ‘most  unfortunate’ with immediate measures taken to rectify the situation,  President Anura Kumara Dissanayake had no intention of evaluating the  qualifications of other MPs as they all maintained the qualifications  they expressed.  

Explaining the concerns raised on social media platforms  over the qualifications of some of its other members, namely Deputy  Speaker Dr. Rizvie Salih and Energy Minister Kumara Jayakody, the senior  Minister said that both individuals held the required qualifications  and said the opposition was attempting to spread baseless allegations to  tarnish the image of the government.  

In fact Dr. Salih on Friday, in a statement on his  Facebook, said he held an MBBS degree from Nishtar Medical College in  Pakistan and a Diploma in Laryngo Otorhinology from the University of  Colombo.  

“By sharing my qualifications, I aim to reaffirm the  confidence of the people who have placed their trust in me,” Dr. Salih  said.   

As for the inaccurate Dr. title listed for Justice Minister  Harshana Nanayakkara, the Minister said this was an error done by the  Parliament media team and the matter had been rectified immediately.  

Justice Minister Nanayakkara however filed a complaint with  the CID yesterday requesting an inquiry into the inclusion of  inaccurate educational qualifications in the Parliament database.  

As the Speaker’s seat remains vacant, the Daily Mirror learns  that the NPP will propose Dr. Jagath Wickramaratne, a Member of  Parliament from the Polonnaruwa District, as the new Speaker when  Parliament convenes today. This move will also reject the SJB’s request,  who said they too would propose three names from its party to be  nominated for the Speaker’s post.  

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake has informed his close  confidantes that the recent allegations should not hinder the work of  the government and has ordered all its 158 MPS to be present for all  parliamentary sittings even in the coming New Year. Ministers have been  informed to give priority to their Ministerial work.