The Northern Provincial Council (NPC) Resolution on a federal state has no impact as the decision making powers on those matters lie solely with the Central Government and Parliament, Education Minister and UNP Deputy General Secretary Akila Viraj Kariyawasam said. Addressing a press conference at Sirikotha yesterday, he stressed the Resolution bears no legal validity, adding what was proposed in it was not workable.
“The President and the Prime Minister won’t let anybody to divide this country.They are firm about it. Any solution to the national question must be within a unitary state. We accept there must be power devolution in a manner that the rights of all are protected. We also uphold that the Sri Lankan identity must be promoted disregarding ethnic and religious differences,” he said.
Kariyawasam, responding to a question by a journalist, said the act of the NPC could have been aimed at gaining more popularity among the voters in that constituency.
The minister also reacting to the Joint Opposition’s demands to arrest Opposition Leader R.Sampanthan for allegedly entering an Army Camp forcibly, asked whether the arrest would solve the issues of the people in the North.
“We do not approve such behaviour from Sapmanthan and the NPC. However, the government deals on such problems in a careful and strategic manner. We take appropriate action regarding them. At the same time we do not fall into the traps of pseudo-patriots who try to fan communalism,” he said.
Responding to a question, Kariyawasam said the draft guidelines for print and electronic media during periods of elections would be presented to Parliament shortly subject to Cabinet approval.
He said the set of guidelines are aimed at ensuring justice for both media and the politicians and balancing media content.
Commenting on granting appointments in the education sector to those who had been subjected to various political and other injustices over the past years, the minister said the granting of these appointments have been temporarily halted.
However, he said the process of selection had been carried out in a very transparent and systematic manner.
Kariyawasam said justice would be ensured to this group without discriminating against those who had qualified in competitive examinations.
He said out of the 4,500 shortlisted after inquiries, about 2,000 had already retired.
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