Opposition MP Kavinda Jayawardena has raised concerns over the absence of President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s name from the official invitation for the National War Heroes’ Day ceremony held yesterday (May 19).
The President attended the event, held at the War Heroes’ Memorial in Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, but Jayawardena questioned why the invitation card had listed the Deputy Minister of Defence as the Chief Guest instead of the President.
He challenged recent claims made by Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath that the President was always scheduled to attend the ceremony, questioning that, in that case, why the President’s name was not mentioned in the invitation.
“Was the Foreign Minister Vijtha Herath lying? If the President was always supposed to attend, why wasn’t his name printed as Chief Guest?” the MP questioned.
The issue gained traction after opposition groups and social media users criticized the apparent absence of the President from the program. Following the backlash, the President’s attendance was confirmed, and he participated in the event.
In a television interview, Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath attributed the confusion to an internal miscommunication by an official and said it was corrected as soon as it was identified.
However, the opposition has since released a copy of the invitation card, which clearly names the Deputy Minister of Defence as the event’s Chief Guest, intensifying their criticism of the government’s handling of the ceremony. (Newswire)
