‘JO’ now turns guns on Attorney General

The ‘Joint Opposition’ has been the beneficiary of the coalition’s non-performance or shortcomings rather than proactive political action on its own part.

Nevertheless, one area where the ‘JO’ has revelled is in moving Votes of No Confidence in Parliament. The latest to be listed in the Addendum of Parliament is one against Health Minister Rajitha Senaratne, the official Government spokesperson. No dates have been fixed so far.

Among the charges listed against Dr. Senaratne is failure to adopt prompt measures, as the Minister of Health, to control the outbreak of dengue. The threat from dengue has receded considerably but the threat of a Vote of No Confidence remains.

Now, UPFA parliamentarian Udaya Gammanpila hinted on Friday that the “Joint Opposition” would resort to the Removal of Officers (Procedure) Act No 5 of 2002 to bring a Vote of No Confidence against the Attorney General.

This is for expressing the opinion that the Provincial Council Elections (Amendment) Bill that was approved by Parliament on Thursday did not require the approval of the Provincial Councils.

When ‘JO’ parliamentarians protested, Speaker Karu Jayasuriya summoned the Attorney General on Thursday to seek his opinion.

‘JO’ parliamentarians insist that the approval of the Provincial Councils was necessary. However, the AG told Speaker Jayasuriya it was not required.

The 2002 law lays downs the procedure for the removal of Attorney General or the Inspector General of Police on several grounds including gross abuse of power of his office; gross neglect of duty or gross partiality in office.