President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has stressed that all criminal activity being carried out by underworld figures and drug smugglers must be brought to a stop. The President said this while meeting with the relevant officials yesterday.
He noted that there is information that most crimes and large scale drug smuggling is happening from within the Prisons. He added that popular public opinion also supports this premise.
The President made these observations yesterday (01) evening at a meeting held at the Presidential secretariat. He ordered that all mobile phone use from within the prison must be stopped.
A committee comprising of the Secretary of Defence, Army Commander, and the IGP will see to address the issues within the Department of Prisons according to directions given by the and provide the necessary training as well as incentives to prison staff. He also said training and other activities of the department should be observed by a monitoring team.
The President also said corrupt and ineffective officials should be identified and dealt with as well.