The main Opposition today accused Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena of lying to Parliament over the controversial letter sent and withdrawn by Secretary to the Ministry of Public Administration Neel Hapuhinne with instructions to all District Secretaries/ Government Agents on the Local Government elections.
As per the letter, Secretary to the Ministry of Public Administration Neel Hapuhinne had instructed all District Secretaries/ Government Agents not to accept deposits from political parties for the Local Government Election 2023.
After the matter had come to light, Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena had informed Parliament in January that the Cabinet did not take any such decision instructing to halt accepting deposits.
However, a Right to Information (RTI) request, filed by local media Ceylon Today, has revealed that Secretary to the Cabinet of Ministers M. Kodippili Arachchi, on 10th January, had sent a letter to Hapuhinna conveying to him the Cabinet decision taken on 9th January to halt the acceptance of deposits. (NewsWire)
