Five monetary Bills passed legally - Speaker

Uditha Kumarasinghe and Rajmi Manatunga

Kotte: Speaker W. J. M. Lokubandara yesterday emphasised that the five monetary Bills presented in Parliament on Thursday were validly passed despite claims by Opposition parties to the contrary.

Responding to questions raised by Opposition Members of Parliament when the House met last morning, the Speaker said extraordinary situations called for extraordinary measures and confirmed that there will be no change in the decision made regarding the Bills.

"If 'terrorism' is used in the course of a vote, I have to exercise my powers to cope with the situation. That is why I was compelled to take necessary steps according to my conscience," he said adding that no question could arise as to the validity of the Bills.

However, the Speaker gave the green light for an open discussion between all political parties on matters connected to the passing of the Bills, provided that it will not prejudice the decision made on Thursday.

Speaking at the start of proceedings, Opposition Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe called on the Speaker to place the Finance (Amendment) (No. 257) Act, Regional Infrastructure Development Levy (Amendment) Act, Excise (Special Provisions) (Amendment) Act and Special Commodity Levy Act on the Order Paper against since they were passed in violation of Standing Orders.

Wickremesinghe also apologised for the situation that arose at the vote on Thursday and proposed that party leaders meet to make a decision on the matter. But this was opposed by Chief Government Whip Jeyaraj Fernandopulle.

Raising another issue, Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) Parliamentarian Anura Kumara Dissanayake questioned the Speaker as to whether it was the amended version or the unamended version of the Finance (Amendment) Bill (No. 256) that is deemed to be passed.

The amended version of the Bill which sought to do away with the Rs. 50 fixed rental on mobile phones was initially passed by electronic voting while the unamended version was voted on using the voice method.