Govt. challenged to appoint a select committee to probe corruption

The United National Party (UNP) said the capital is becoming a ghost city where civilians have no freedom to engage in daily activities.

"When Defence Secretary travells around Colombo for example, people were forced to look at the walls without looking at the road," UNP spokesman Gayantha Karunathilake told journalists.

MIG fighter jets

Security has been tightened for powerful Gotabhaya Rajapaksa after he was targetted allegedly by LTTE suicide bomber in December, last year.

But the UNP says his security men are harrasing civilians as a result.

The UNP accused President Rajapaksa's political allies, Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) and Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) of being silent about '"widespread corruption" in the government.

Rajitha Senaratne, a member of the jumbo cabinet, has accused some of the members of corrupt deals before joining the government

Parliamentarian Jayalath Jayawardene challenged the government to appoint a Parliamentary Select Committee to probe into the alleged corruption in buying MIG fighter planes from Ukraine.

The government, for their part, has challenged the UNP to prove their allegations.

PA government

Minister Rajitha Senaratne, who is still a member of the UNP, told BBC Sandeshaya that the UNP should take actions to prove allegations than holding press conferences.

"Jayalath Jayawardene himself was accused of corrupt deals," he said.

When he accused the then PA government led by President Chandrika Kumaratunga, Senaratne said, he managed to prove the allegations in the parliament.

However, no member of the PA government was brought into justice despite UNP's repeated allegations of corruption and mishandling of public finance.

Those accused by Senaratne for corruption are currently members of the Cabinet of Ministers in which Senaratne holds Construction portfolio.