Hon. Ananda Wijepala

Mr. Deputy Speaker, I can provide answers based on ongoing investigations. I cannot present any matter to this House without responsibility, nor can I provide whatever answers the Opposition desires. I thank the Hon. Leader of the Opposition for offering to help the Government suppress underworld activity and for stating it in this House. You have the capacity to help and many avenues to do so. Especially within your party, there are local authority members linked to these matters. By way of example, there are members associated with the underworld figure “Rangama Vidura”—their relatives and connections. The sister of “Kosgoda Suji” is a local authority member of the SJB. Through such persons, there are connections to these killings. Every life is innocent, and we are working to ensure that no life is lost. However, these incidents recur. Though they may appear isolated, there are common factors, and we are conducting in-depth investigations. You, too, can act: if individuals in your political parties have such connections, remove them and send a message that murders must stop. I also say to the people of this country: please understand, with sincerity, how much effort we expend to suppress the underworld and the narcotics menace. As to your second point on Police vacancies: when there are 35,116 vacancies and 10,000 are to be recruited, we are proceeding continuously. Approval has been obtained to recruit 10,000; 1,500 have already been selected and will be sent to Police Training Schools within the next two weeks. About 200 Sub-Inspectors have been selected and are undergoing medicals; 1,300 Police Constables have also been selected, and interviews are ongoing. We expect to issue a second Gazette this week or in the first week of March, including recruitment to the Women’s Police Service and to other cadres. I must clarify to the House that this cannot be done in a very short period because there are many steps: preliminary interviews, the written examination, interviews based on results, background checks, narcotics screening, medical tests, and then six months of training. Even with maximum efficiency, these steps take at least about ten months. We are managing this process efficiently, leveraging technology and improving officers’ productivity with incentives. There will be no shortcuts. On Public Security Committees: the Inspector-General of Police has already issued a circular clarifying that these Committees are not to become political committees. As I stated earlier in Parliament, the Secretary is the Grama Niladhari of the area; the Convener is the Community Police Officer; and the Chairperson is chosen from among the members. For a long time under your administrations, former Community Police Committee Chairpersons issued character certificates when requested. Some of those former members have now become members of the Public Security Committees and are following old habits. Our circular clearly sets out the purpose of these Committees. I have also explained this across all provinces and districts when meeting Police teams. We formed these Committees in a fair manner. There is no need for us to politicize them. I asked the Senior DIG of the CID, and he informed me that no one has been summoned on this matter with his knowledge. I will inquire further, Hon. Leader of the Opposition. There is no need to deploy the Police for such things. Where a former Community Police Committee member is now a Public Security Committee member and has requested as per prior practice, that is a matter to be disregarded. We have already clarified this in the House. All 14,000 Public Security Committees are to support narcotics prevention, narcotics eradication, and crime control. They are not law-enforcement bodies; they assist the Police. At all times, we have targets, a vision and a work plan. We are steering the Police accordingly—freeing it from politicization, implementing strategic changes and energizing it. We are working tirelessly to control the crimes that arise. I place that on record, Mr. Deputy Speaker.