Industry and Entrepreneurship Development Minister Sunil Handunnetti has called for disciplinary action against Kaduwela Mayor Ranjan Jayalal over remarks on private companies giving gifts to public employees.

Handunnetti said the Mayor’s statement was completely unacceptable and did not reflect the position of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), the National People’s Power (NPP) or their members and supporters.

“We completely condemn the statement made by Kaduwela Mayor Ranjan Jayalal. This is not a statement that should be made even in private,” the Minister said on a television programme.

He said the government’s commitment to the law must begin with its own representatives. “When we say we are fixing the law, it means we apply it first to ourselves. Saying that people should give hampers or gifts is wrong,” he said.

Handunnetti confirmed that disciplinary action had been proposed against the Mayor and said such conduct should be dealt with through legal means. Since Jayalal made the remarks in public, he should also admit his mistake in public and correct his statement before the media, the Minister said.

“My personal stance is that disciplinary action must be taken against him, and he must publicly accept that his statement was wrong,” he said. He added that no party member or public official should make such statements in public or in private, and that the public should not consider such demands acceptable.

Background

The row began on Sunday, 8 November, when Jayalal spoke at an event on canal-bank stabilisation work in Arangala, Malabe. He urged private companies to continue the practice of giving gifts and hampers to municipal and other public-sector employees during the festive season.

The Mayor said companies that traditionally distributed food, beverages and other products to employees of public institutions in December should keep doing so.

Handunnetti said the party had expelled several people in the past over misconduct, and that the latest incident should be a warning to all party members and public officials.

The NPP, in which the JVP is the main party, came to power promising to tackle corruption and to hold public officials to the law. That promise is the standard Handunnetti referred to when he said the law must be applied first to the government’s own people.

Under Sri Lankan law, public officials are barred from taking gratification connected with their duties, and the Bribery Act sets out offences and penalties for such conduct. Whether a particular gift falls under those provisions depends on the circumstances in which it is given and received.

What it means

For readers who deal with municipal councils and other public offices, the Minister’s statement is a public position from a member of the government that gifts and hampers for public servants are not acceptable, whether sought openly or privately.

The statement also signals that the party’s leadership expects local government members to follow the same standards as the national government. The disciplinary action Handunnetti said had been proposed against the Mayor is the next step to watch, along with whether Jayalal makes a public correction as the Minister demanded.