Commotion at Presidential Secretariat; Police denies entrance to Thero

Colombo (News 1st): A group including Venerable Jamburewela Chandraratana Thero arrived at the Presidential Secretariat this afternoon (Jan 17) to hand over a letter. However, a dispute arose when the police did not allow them to enter the Presidential Secretariat. The group, known as the Mahajana Yuthukam Kendraya, tried to enter the Presidential Secretariat to hand over a letter requesting for a presidential pardon for the imprisoned officers of the Three Armed Forces and to solve the salary issues of disabled war heroes.

Ven. Jamburewela Chandarathana Thero: Why can't we enter the Presidential Secretariat? Policeman: You cannot go. Ven. Jamburewela Chandarathana Thero: Why is that? Policeman: There's a procedure. Ven. Jamburewela Chandarathana Thero: What's the procedure? Policeman: Ven. Thero you must do the necessary work, and not create any trouble. Ven. Jamburewela Chandarathana Thero: Please don't create any unnecessary issues. Policeman: Ven. Thero you are creating issues. Everything is arranged here. Ven. Jamburewela Chandarathana Thero: We want to go to the Presidential Secretariat and hand over a letter, you must serve our need. Policeman: This is not the right place, we have been told to bring you there. Ven. Jamburewela Chandarathana Thero: After coming there last time as well. Policeman: It is in their hands. Ven. Jamburewela Chandarathana Thero: Please don't create any issues and act like the time of good governance. Policeman: When you come there is always some problem. Ven. Jamburewela Chandarathana Thero: What's the problem? Policeman: You just need to get this done right? Ven. Jamburewela Chandarathana Thero: You don't have a right to do this. This is wrong. This will bring disrepute to the name of the President. The way you are misbehaving. Policeman: You are the one misbehaving. Ven. Jamburewela Chandarathana Thero: How am I misbehaving? Policeman: You are the one trying to barge in. Ven. Jamburewela Chandarathana Thero: Please send him somewhere else. Policeman: Ven. Thero, I'm only enforcing the law properly. Ven. Jamburewela Chandarathana Thero: If you are enforcing the law allow us in. You send us to different places every day. You are doing the same things that you did during Ranil's time.

Thereafter, the group was authorized to enter the Presidential Secretariat. Venerable Jamburewela Chandrarathana Thero spoke to journalists after handing over the letters to a representative of the Presidential Secretariat.

"The officer-in-charge of the Fort police artificially created a problem and brought disrepute to the President and the Presidential Secretariat in the process. So we requested the secretary to the President to order the relevant institutions to take disciplinary action against this conduct of the OIC of the Fort Police."