Clean Sri Lanka Coordinators face opposition as regional secretaries reject political appointees inside Divisional Secretariat offices.
The Clean Sri Lanka Coordinators controversy has deepened after the Association of Sri Lankan Regional Secretaries and Assistant Regional Secretaries formally objected to political representatives being placed inside Divisional Secretariat offices.
The Association has written to Secretary to the President Nandika Sanath Kumanayake, warning that appointing political representatives as Clean Sri Lanka Coordinators to Divisional Secretariat offices threatens the independence of the state service.
They have also emphasized that they cannot provide physical facilities, including a chair and a table, for the individuals appointed by the Presidential Secretariat.
The objection has created fresh tension between senior administrative officials and the government at a time when public institutions are already under scrutiny over politicization, independence, and pressure on state officers.
The Association of Regional Secretaries said honest public service cannot be provided while a representative of a political party is hosted inside a Divisional Secretariat office.
They have requested the Presidential Secretariat to withdraw the decision without affecting the independence of the state service.
However, questions remain over whether the government will reverse the decision or attempt to proceed despite resistance from administrative officers across the country.
Regional Secretaries say similar attempts made by previous governments to appoint political representatives to Divisional Secretariat offices were defeated through trade union action.
They warned that they will not hesitate to take trade union action again if state officials are pressured under the current government.
In March, Secretary to the President Nandika Sanath Kumanayake informed all Chief Secretaries of Provinces and District Secretaries to provide an office room with sufficient space and office equipment within District and Divisional Secretariat premises for the duties of Clean Sri Lanka Coordinators.
The instruction included facilities for correspondence and other official work linked to the coordinators.
It was also emphasized that a management service officer or a development officer should be attached to maintain the correspondence of these coordinators.
This raises concerns about whether state resources, public office space, and government officers are being used to support individuals viewed by administrative officials as political representatives.
The Association of Sri Lankan Regional Secretaries and Assistant Regional Secretaries, which is protesting the Presidential Secretariat’s decision, claims that government officials are being pressured by politicians to provide office facilities to the government’s political representatives.
They also allege that pressure is being placed on officials to deploy state officers to assist those representatives.
Chairman of the Association, R. Senthil, said practical problems have already arisen due to the notification requiring physical facilities, including chairs and tables, to be provided inside Divisional Secretariat offices for the individuals appointed by the Presidential Secretariat.
He also noted that an official had been assigned to look into facilities connected to the coordinators.
According to R. Senthil, hosting a representative of a political party inside a Divisional Secretariat office would undermine the social acceptance of the entire Divisional Secretariat office structure.
He pointed out that such a move would make it difficult to maintain these offices as recommendation control and independent institutions.
The issue has now become more serious because the Presidential Secretariat’s March 20 letter to Chief Secretaries of Provinces and District Secretaries outlined appointments at multiple levels.
According to that letter, 09 Provincial Coordinators, 25 District Coordinators, and 341 Divisional Coordinators have been appointed under the Clean Sri Lanka programme.
The scale of the appointments has intensified concerns among public administrators, as the proposed structure would place coordinators across provincial, district, and divisional levels.
What happens next could be critical for the independence of Sri Lanka’s state service, as regional administrators now appear ready to resist what they see as the political occupation of public offices under the Clean Sri Lanka programme.
