Minister of Development Strategies and International Trade, Malik Samarawickrama has vehemently refuted reports attributing to a Cabinet minister, which claimed that all economic decisions made at the Cabinet Committee on Economic Management (CCEM) were taken by the Prime Minister and Minister Malik Samarawickrama alone.
“The report is erroneous and misleading. The CCEM was a thorough consultative process” the Minister said releasing a statement this week. According to him the CCEM comprised of all ministers involved in economic affairs while discussions pertaining to a particular Ministry always included the subject minister, irrespective of political party and officials and bureaucrats from the agency under discussion.
The Minister in his statement noted that all decisions reached by the CCEM were then forwarded to Cabinet for final approval and ratification and the Cabinet was finally, collectively responsible for all economic management decisions made. “If Ministers claim this was an arbitrary process it can only be assumed that persons making such remarks have not focused or paid attention during meetings of the Cabinet of Ministers,” the statement added.