Official vs. private: Where does one draw the line?

THE case against former President Ranil Wickremesinghe has resulted in a debate over what constitutes official and private undertakings by an elected official, particularly when he/she happens to be executive president of the country.

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The case against Wickremesinghe is that he used a sum amounting to Rs. 16 million of State funds during a transit stop in London en route from New York during which he attended a ceremony at a British university where his wife Maithree was being awarded a professorship.

At the weekly Cabinet press briefing on Tuesday, which was attended by Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath as the regular Cabinet spokesman Minister Nalinda Jayatissa is overseas, he was asked for a response to allegations that President Anura Kumara Disanayake visited his mother using his official vehicle after being elected to office and if this didn’t constitute the use of State resources for private purposes.

Travelling to a place within the country for personal needs cannot be compared with overseas visits by reserving seats on a flight, he said, defending the President's visit.

So the logic is that you can use State resources for private purposes while in Sri Lanka but not when you travel overseas.