Namal Rajapaksa launched a fiery attack in Parliament, accusing government ministers of releasing suspicious containers from the port despite foreign intelligence warnings. He said the current administration is now trying to pin the responsibility on the Rajapaksa family, but insisted that the government itself must face accountability.
Parliamentary Member Namal Rajapaksa fiercely criticized the government, claiming that the controversial containers were deliberately released from the port under the watch of current ministers. Speaking in Parliament, he accused the ruling administration of attempting to shift the blame onto the Rajapaksas despite clear evidence that responsibility lies with government officials.
Namal said the Deputy Minister in charge of ports had openly admitted to the media that he personally gave instructions to release the containers. He reminded Parliament that the minister had even stated he would “take full responsibility” for the containers if anything illegal was found.
Citing government-controlled media, including an article in Dinamina, Namal highlighted that foreign intelligence agencies based in India had issued early warnings about these containers late last year and early this year. According to him, intelligence reports confirmed the risks, yet the containers were still released.
“Now we are talking about these two containers. Two storks did not lift the container and throw it into the sea. These containers came from the port. When they come from the port, the Port Control Unit stops them. They stop and check them. This is also what is mentioned in the newspapers that reports were received from foreign intelligence agencies,” Namal told Parliament.
He tabled the Dinamina article which confirmed that Sri Lanka Police and the Police Narcotics Bureau had already received intelligence alerts. “The inspection was done and the containers have gone home. How did they go? Now, is it the Rajapaksa family? If so, then the government has no business. If the entire port is controlled by the Rajapaksa family, the customs are controlled by the Rajapaksa family, the police are controlled by the Rajapaksa family, and the organized criminals are controlled by the Rajapaksa family, then what is your government doing? You clearly threw the containers out of this port,” he said.
Namal Rajapaksa further alleged that this was not an isolated incident. He claimed that hundreds of containers had been released in the same manner and that even when international intelligence agencies repeatedly requested inspections, no effective action was taken.
“The deputy minister in charge of ports has given a statement to the media that he will take full responsibility for the containers that went there. The journalist asks. He says that he gave instructions to the gate. The journalist asks what will happen if there are drugs in these. The minister says that we are responsible for this. That they will accept it,” Namal recounted.
He emphasized that while President Anura Kumara Dissanayake himself admitted that “a mistake had been made,” the responsibility clearly falls on the sitting government.
“The containers were deliberately thrown out. It wasn’t just those three hundred containers, this thing happened continuously. Even when international intelligence units told us to seize them, the police did not act. In August, the intelligence agencies also informed us to look into this. You did not act. If you do not act, it will be useless to accuse us later. If there is someone guilty of this, political status will not apply, he must be punished. The investigations that are being conducted must be impartial, fair and transparent. Don’t be ready to blame the government’s deal on us. The government threw the containers out. The government ministers threw the containers out of the port. This is not us. The president came and said that a mistake has been made. The government threw the containers out and now they are hacking here,” Namal declared.
The heated exchange in Parliament underscored the political blame game over container releases, drug trafficking suspicions, and accountability. Namal Rajapaksa’s comments have intensified public debate, with critics demanding impartial investigations into the scandal.
