Covid resurgence raises temperatures in Parliament
Parliament sessions continued this week even as the country faced a resurgence of COVID- 19 cases, with the deadly pandemic having a significant effect on the affairs of the House.
Before the new Parliament convened, the Health Ministry had given strict COVID- 19 prevention guidelines specifically for Parliament. MPs, for the most part, had all but ignored them from the first day itself. Many MPs were even seen without masks, though the situation had changed markedly this week, with more masks being worn in the Chamber and outside, while there was stricter adherence to COVID-19 prevention guidelines.
At the beginning of this week’s sessions on Tuesday, Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena made a special statement emphasising to all MPs the importance of adhering to the health guidelines at all times in Parliament and outside in light of the current situation. He also requested the members not to bring outsiders with them to Parliament. Only Government officials whose presence is essential should be called to Parliament, he said, adding that the guidelines also strictly applied to Parliament staff members, jour nalists covering Parliament, security officers and suppliers of goods and services to Parliament.
The Parliamentary Business Committee, headed by the Speaker and consisting of party leaders, met on Tuesday and Wednesday to review the situation and decide whether to continue with Parliament sittings. A decision was ultimately made to continue, though Friday’s sittings were limited to the ‘ Questions for Oral Answers’ lasting just over an hour. Also on Friday, the scheduled Vote of Condolence for three deceased MPs was postponed to the next sitting week.
A more serious development was the indefinite postponement of the proceedings of the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) and the Committee on Public Accounts ( COPA). The two key committees met on Tuesday, with both committees deciding to continue the practice adopted in the previous Parliament of keeping their proceedings open to the media.
The COPE, under the chairmanship of Prof. Charitha Herath, looked into the irregularities said to have taken place in Ceylon Coal Company Limited's call for tenders for the purchase of coal.
Meanwhile, the COPA under Prof. Tissa Vitharana had looked into ir re gularities in the Sustainable Development Council established to implement the Sustainable Development Goals 2030. The two committees' chairpersons were forced to postpone further meetings following the Government's decision to suspend public gatherings due to the prevailing COVID-19 situation.
The real danger posed by the disease to MPs and parliament staff was again emphasised when a family member of an employee of the Parliament Service Unit tested positive for COVID-19. The unit is situated away from the Parliament complex in P e l aw at t a , Battaramulla and operating under the Ministry of Local Government & Provincial Councils. This resulted in the premises being made off limits to all outsiders, including MPs.
Inside Parliament’s Chambers, the Government came under attack from the Opposition for its response to the pandemic. Health Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi, in particular, faced questions from the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) over her previous statements allegedly claiming victory over the virus.
On Friday, Chief Opposition Whip Lakshman Kiriella tabled two media statements attributed to the Health Minister. In the statements made on September 3 and April 22, she had claimed that Sri Lanka had eradicated community transmission of COVID-19.
Mr. Kiriella said: “Doctors always emphasised that this virus had not been eradicated. The Government Medical Officers’ Association and the Medical Research Institute too said the same thing. Unfortunately, people took this lightly since the Government kept on insisting up until the election that they had won the fight against the virus. This was a cheap attempt to score political points. If the Government had taken the threat seriously and warned the people, they would have been on their guard."
Minister Wanniarachchi accused Mr Kiriella of only taking one part of her statement and taking it out of context. “You have only listened to the first part of my statement. I urge you to listen to the entire statement,” she added. “During the elections, you and the Opposition Leader went around the country campaigning without masks. That shows that you too also believed that the threat had passed,” she retorted.
As more precautions are being t a ken ag ainst COV I D - 1 9 , Indigenous Medicine Promotion Minister Sisira Jayakody presented to the Speaker on Friday a set of ayurvedic drugs developed to combat the disease. The drugs consist of an immunising drink and powder. He said the drugs have been developed jointly by the Department of Ayurveda and the Ay u r v e d i c Drugs Corporation.
Amid renewed concerns over the pandemic, Parliament is next scheduled to meet on October 20. On t h at d at e, S p e a ke r Abeywardena is also due to announce the Supreme Court’s decision regarding the 20th Amendment to the Constitution. The Parliamentary Business Committee has decided to meet again to make the necessary changes to Parliament’s order paper so as to accommodate the debate on 20A.
An adjournment debate on the current health situation has also been fixed for October 22.