Government prepared to face any No Confidence Motion – Prime Minister

Ranil Wickremesinghe

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe yesterday said that the government did not refuse to take up the No Confidence Motion (NCM) against Minister Rishad Bathiudeen for debate in Parliament.

The Prime Minister further said that the government “will not run away from anything” and is prepared to face the JVP’s NCM against the government as well.

“If we allowed the Opposition to bring in a NCM against me, why should we worry about this NCM against Minister Bathiudeen?” Prime Minister Wickremesinghe said.The Prime Minister speaking of the Selective Committee which is to inquire into the Easter Sunday terror attacks said that it can summon any Parliamentarian or Governor for questioning.

Addressing the Speaker, Prime Minister Wickremesinghe explained, “The government never refused a NCM. It is your responsibility to fix a date for the debate” which was followed by an “Ah, there you go!” from several Opposition MPs. The Opposition MPs were critical of Speaker Jayasuriya for not being as efficient as the occasions where he allowed the NCMs against the 52 day-coup-government. The Opposition MPs also attempted to interrupt Prime Minister Wickremesinghe’s speech and Speaker Jayasuriya advised them against it.

“Please allow him to speak. You should behave in a civilized manner. Opposition Leader, please take care of this,” the Speaker said. The Prime Minister also said the government would not be limited by party politics. He also said that he wanted to clarify the government’s stance on the NCM because the Opposition MPs were levelling serious allegations against the Speaker.

(Source: Daily News – By Camelia Natheniel, Sandasen Marasinghe and Amali Mallawaarachchi)