General Secretary of the Ceylon Teachers’ Union, Joseph Stalin, says that the special investigation into a primary scholarship tuition teacher receiving VIP police escort to the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall (BMICH) in Colombo is “hilarious.”
Addressing a media briefing in Colombo, Stalin questioned the rationale behind launching an investigation after the police themselves had facilitated a full convoy and special protection for the teacher in question.
“It’s comical that the police are now investigating something they themselves authorised,” Stalin said. “Did they provide VIP-level security to someone claiming to be a teacher without even checking her background?”
Stalin said that the teacher, by organizing a large-scale event at BMICH, involving thousands of students and parents, had violated Education Ministry circulars. “This was clearly a publicity stunt by someone acting outside the law, and yet the police provided a full convoy for it,” he said.
Police Media Spokesman SSP Buddhika Manatunga said that a special investigation had been launched into the incident. He said that although the teacher had requested police protection citing the presence of nearly 3,000 children, she had ultimately used the escort for herself, which is considered a serious breach of protocol.
The investigation is being conducted under the supervision of the Senior DIG of the Western Province. According to police, a security detail, comprising 20 officers, a police car, and several motorcycles, had been assigned to the event after the teacher paid an estimated Rs. 400,000 for the service.
SSP Manatunga said that the police escort was provided following standard procedures used for public events such as children’s programmes and film productions. However, preliminary findings suggest that the teacher may have misused the service for personal gain.
Police headquarters sources said that authorities were also conducting a broader inquiry into the teacher’s credentials, including her educational qualifications and the legitimacy of the institution she represented. Police officers involved in approving and executing the special protection detail are also being questioned.
by Norman Palihawadane and Dhammika Salwathura
from The Island https://ift.tt/lIOvumi
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