by Shamindra Ferdinando
IGP Victor Perera yesterday acknowledged that the current focus on VVIP and VIP security was flawed and a re-thinking of the strategy was needed to meet the growing threat posed by the LTTE.
The current approach was at the expense of the ordinary people, he admitted. Due to the deployment of a sizeable force on VVIP and VIP security duties as well as providing security to vital installations, the police was finding it extremely difficult to meet the growing manpower requirement to meet other challenges.
Armed forces and the Special Task Force (STF) too have contributed a significant number of personnel for VIP protection with President Mahinda Rajapaksa and Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa receiving highest priority.
The police chief, under fire by UNP-led Opposition for reducing UNP parliamentarian T. Maheswaran’s security shortly before his assassination on January 1 said that the need was to enhance security in the City and its suburbs without being distracted by various other factors.
Addressing a special press conference at Police Headquarters, Perera who once functioned as the DIG in charge of the Presidential Security Division (PSD) during Chandrika Kumaratunga’s tenure as the president (he requested that he be relieved of these duties following the LTTE attempt on Kumaratunga’s life in December 1999), claimed that the current focus on individuals was detrimental to what he called overall security environment in the city and its suburbs.
He expressed the belief that it would be better to provide adequate security to an area rather than protecting ‘individual targets’.
According to him, police deployed for security in the city and its suburbs was boosted with an additional 800 personnel a few days ago. But that wouldn’t be enough, he said, acknowledging the growing challenge amidst stepped up LTTE attacks.
The government last week brought DIG Nimal Lewke, the Commandant of the elite STF into what the IGP called the ``Colombo security apparatus.’’ Lewke would work with DIG Nimal Mediwaka, in charge of Colombo.
Responding to a question whether Anura Bandaranaike’s security was raised again after he pledged to back President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s government, Perera claimed that the decision was made by the Defence Ministry subsequent to a request made by the MP.
The government reduced the number of policemen assigned to Bandaranaike from 72 to two after he switched allegiance to the Opposition shortly before the final Dec. 3 vote on the Budget but agreed to reverse the decision following a meeting the former National Heritage Minister had with President Rajapaksa on Jan 5.
He asserted that the threat on an individual would depend to some extent on his or her public statements. He said that Colombo would come under increased pressure as security forces stepped up offensive action in the Vanni.
Referring to the recent decision to increase the number of police personnel assigned for protection of MPs, he said that everything possible would be done to enhance their security.
At a meeting attended by Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickremanayake and Speaker W.J.M. Lokubandara last week, the IGP agreed to increase the number of policemen assigned to each MP from two to four. Perera said that two men will be in uniform.
He admitted that enhanced security will not prevent an LTTE attack. A case in point was the recent assassination of Nation Building Minister D. M. Dassanayake at Ja-ela as he was on his way to attend Parliament, he said.
1 comment:
Can anyone explain how the fat useless Banda who has neverr done anything worth mentioning, deserve 72 people to protect him?
By killing him, the LTTE would be doing us a service. So it is very unlikely that they would. Even if something like that happens, any public outcry would only be short lived as people realize the man was just a parasite.
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