Another unprecedented development is the pressure that is being brought on the media through unorthodox methods by the NPP government. First, a news report in the Daily News of January 17 headlined ‘SPC CHAIRMAN FILES COMPLAINT WITH CID OVER ‘FALSE AND BASELESS ALLEGATIONS MADE AGAINST HEALTH MINISTRY.’ The report states, “The State Pharmaceuticals Corporation (SPC) Chairman has filed a complaint with the CID calling for a full-scale investigation into false and baseless allegations made against the Health Ministry, its institutions, and officials.
“Speaking to the media after filing the complaint, SPC Chairman Dr. Manuj C. Weerasinghe said that the complaint was filed with the CID on Wednesday (15), stating that the constant and relentless false accusations made by the media in recent weeks have been targeted on the drug supply network that is managed by the SPC and healthcare service officials coming under the Health Ministry.
“The SPC Chairman stated that these continuous false claims made by the media against the healthcare services and its officials have disrupted decision-making and operations within the healthcare sector.
“Dr. Weerasinghe has also raised concerns, stating that it is suspected that the allegations and accusations made by the media could be part of an effort to destabilise public healthcare services and therefore called for a full-scale investigation by the CID into the complaint he has filed.”
The consequence of a complaint to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) is a full investigation of the media and those responsible for reporting on the healthcare sector. One is not sure whether the complaint, before it was made, received the approval or not of Media and Health Services Minister Dr. Nalinda Indatissa. Either way, it is a very serious matter and appears to be an insidious exercise to silence the media from reporting matters that are perceived as unfriendly inconvenient to those concerned. If Dr. Weerasinghe has been quoted correctly, he alleges, “False claims made by the media against the healthcare services and its officials have disrupted decision-making and operations…” He has taken it upon himself to speak for the entire health sector’s decision-making process and operations. Is he saying it on his own, or is he parroting them on behalf of a higher authority? The answer seems too obvious.
Firstly, if there are erroneous or misleading reports in the media, as is the practice, those in the healthcare sector could easily point it out to the media through a statement. If their complaints fall on deaf ears, they could deal with the media through the laws of the land. They could also complain to the state-backed Sri Lanka Press Council or even the Press Complaints Commission. The latter has mechanisms to ensure wrong reports are corrected. Besides these, they could also issue a formal statement to all media.
Why then is this unprecedented move? Dr. Weerasinghe has forgotten, or for that matter conveniently overlooked, that the healthcare sector has been one area where there has been bribery, corruption, and gross abuses. It is the media that has been exposing them. So much so that even a one-time cabinet minister has come under investigation for the reckless way he abused the healthcare system to allegedly make money. It is no secret that there were officials in the healthcare sector who were allegedly hand in glove with the minister. I say allegedly since there is a court case pending. Sad enough, some ministers and bureaucrats in the NPP government seem to believe they could silence the media by complaining to the CID.
Ironic enough, not so long ago, a top politician in the NPP government complained that there was a conspiracy when the Sunday Times reported that the politician was an hour late for a formal official function. To make matters worse, instead of referring to the host, a reference was made to a rival country. The only ‘conspiracy’ lay on the politico’s shoulders. Then, it was a ‘conspiracy’. Now, the charge is about “destabilising” the healthcare sector. The minister responsible has to say whether this insidious exercise had his approval or not. Media exposures are obviously hurting, and some of the more enabled bureaucrats think a CID investigation is the answer. They are destroying the very values the NPP leaders spoke of during the presidential and parliamentary elections. To say the least, it is an affront to President Anura Kumara Dissanayake.
The advantage to the NPP government is the crisis that has befallen the Samagi Jana Balavegaya (SJB) and its inability to actively play the role of the opposition. The disadvantage to Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) government will come when more of its chairpersons seek recourse to the CID and thus cast aside with contempt the democratic traditions that have prevailed for decades. Governance has descended to such levels. Blaming it on the media is bound to boomerang.
Excerpts from The Political Column of The Sunday Times (19.01.25)