Why was Rienzie Arsecularatne removed?

Mr. Rienzie Arsecularatne, Additional Solicitor General and Acting Director General of the Bribery Commission, has dropped a bombshell with his announcement that he was removed from the post of Director General of the Bribery Commission because some people did not like his recommendations with regard to investigations undertaken by him.

The lawyer who had figured in recent times in many controversial cases was quoted saying: ‘I’d rather die standing than live on my knees’. He had said that his determination to go ahead with investigations when evidence was available and opposition to continue with inquiries when there was no evidence may have contributed to his removal.

This issue is all the more relevant because his appointment and removal were done by the Presidential Secretariat. Other than Mr. Aresecularartne’s statements, the Presidential Secretariat has made no comment or announcement about his removal. This is indeed strange because of the allegations made recently by the UNP politicians to the Bribery Commission regarding prominent business personalities who are described as close associates of PA government leaders. Allegations have also been made against prominent ministers and top bureaucrats.

Mr. Arsecularatne had been informed of his removal in a very unusual manner. He had said at a press conference that he had been informed of his removal first by a police constable on Sunday and this was confirmed on Monday by a letter from the Presidential Secretariat which said that the decision had been made by the Bribery Commission which includes former Justices Coomaraswamy and Abeydeera. But they had denied any knowledge of the appointment of a new director general. The reasons given in the letter sent to him by the presidential secretariat had been that the government wanted a full time official to do the work of the director general of the commission. The removal and appointment of officials in highly placed positions in such a causal manner is indeed very strange, to say the least. Even minor functionaries are given prior notice and if necessary explanations are called for.

The top priority given by the People's Alliance when it assumed office in 1994 was the appointment of a Permanent Bribery Commission. But soon the commission was in difficulties because the report made on an investigation made on a state bank never saw the light of day and the commissioner concerned resigned. Later the commission was totally paralysed with the commissioners and the director general of the commission locking horns and finally two of the commissioners whom President Kumaratunga wanted to remove refusing to resign. And now come the very serious allegations made by Mr. Arsecularatne.

Mr. Arsecularatne, as his designations indicate, is the second most senior official of the Solicitor Generals Department. The reason given that the government wanted a full time official to hold the post of director general of the Bribery Commission will be laughed out of court because those who appointed him would have been well aware of the posts he held at the time the appointment was made.

This bombshell has exploded at the commencement of the general election campaign and much is going to be made out of this by opposition political parties. It is incumbent on President Kumaratunga to give cogent reasons for the removal of Mr. Arsecularatne.

Playing pandu with politics

Film stars taking to politics, it was said, was like fish taking to water because both politicians and film stars are actors in their own right

Cricketers taking to politics was somewhat difficult to analyse because a commonality was difficult to discern except the age old description of cricketers being ‘flannelled fools’. But modern day cricketers are no fools and they wear much more sophisticated clothing and they earn bags of money.

Imram Khan, the debonair Pakistan and Oxford cricket captain who won the World Cup for Pakistan, was the first cricketer of take to politics. Despite him being an idol of the Pakistanis, Imram failed to enter parliament. That was probably because he formed his own party and contested.

Now, we have former Sri Lanka cricket Captain Arjuna Ranatunga contesting the Colombo District on the PA ticket. Can Arjuna attract voters as he drew cricket fans to see him play? In a recent press interview he has said that he had no ‘blue, green or red’ politics’ and his objective will be improvement of sports in Sri Lanka. Whether voters will forget all the controversial issues over which they are killing each other for improvement of sports is another matter.

Arjuna has another claim to make. He was the person who was responsible for upliftment of cricketers from the less fortunate schools whereas earlier the game was dominated by the so-called big schools, he says.

Whether he can find a constituency of the less fortunate wielders of the willow or ‘barefoot cricketers’ – as the big shcool types may say – to make him win the elections, time will tell. But the big school types will also say: ‘I say Arjuna, not cricket you know – class distinctions and all that. There were quite a few chaps before you from your schools who played for the country'.

And the big school types have quite a large membership in the Colombo District.

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