President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa says that a media group that worked against the country during the war has infiltrated media institutions and is attacking localism and national programs.
He says that media freedom is not the freedom of media owners and that some media owners want to rule the country but cannot do so.
The President has stated that he has not exerted any influence on the media as President and that he will not hesitate to take legal action against such groups if they try to drag the country and the people back into the abyss by misusing the media for the benefit of various groups and individuals.
He was speaking at a ‘Chat with the Village’ program centered on the Yombuweltenna village in the Walapane Divisional Secretariat area in the Nuwara Eliya District.
He says that there are wonderful people in the media now and that media freedom is not the freedom of the person who owns the media institution, it is a mafia.
There are no kings or maharajas in our country. The Maharajas were in India. Governments here are trying to control the ruler. They can’t be with me. I know if you want to teach lessons do them. I have given media freedom. I ruled the country for 14 months. I did not go to control any media institution. But if they misuse it, there are rules and there are ways to do it. I enforce those laws. The President further emphasized that it will be implemented.
He also said that groups that were active against the government during the war were trying to re-emerge.