‘Minister Kiriella is just like Mahinda Rajapaksa’

Feb 11, 2017

‘Those days, the highways ministry was under ex-president Mahinda Rajapaksa. He ran that ministry very efficiently. The former president was very much interested, and had a liking, to build roads throughout the country. He would have carpeted a road even if that led to a paddy field. Those days, had he wanted to bait a minister or a chief minister, he used to send ministry secretary Premasiri, and the relevant person was given the task of building some roads in that area. How many had Mr. Mahinda Rajapaksa silenced like that? On that account, highways was the best ministry in the government,” said several Sri Lanka Administrative Service officials during a recent visit to London, England.

They further told a group of Sri Lankans living in Harrow, “Now, what we don’ have is Mahinda Rajapaksa only. The work is done in the same manner by minister Kiriella and his family members. The minister’s daughter is very good at the work. Whoever says anything, minister Kiriella gives priority to Dhamma in his work. That is evident by his appointment of several monks as advisers to the highways ministry. There are several monks in his 50-odd panel of advisers. What is the purpose of a ministerial position, if a minister cannot appoint a person of his choice to a position? Things are continuing in the same manner things were done in the past. What is left for us to do is to sign only. In the end, we wonder if all the blame will come to us.”