Speaker speaks out: Advises media to black out blaggard MPs

Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena has appealed to the media not to give publicity to unruly behaviour and crass speeches made by MPs in Parliament.

He made the request during a one-day workshop held for Parliamentary correspondents.

The Speaker said young MPs could learn much from going through speeches made by famous MPs such as Dr. N. M. Perera and Dr. Colvin R. de Silva, adding that he had instructed officials at the

Parliament library to collect such speeches and provide copies to MPs.

The Speaker made no secret of how he felt about the quality of speeches made by MPs in the House to date.

“How many even stick to the topic they are supposed to be speaking on," he asked.

The more publicity the media gives to vituperative speeches and unruly behaviour, the more emboldened those MPs would be to keep doing it because they are assured of more publicity, the Speaker said. Even former Speaker Karu Jayasuriya lamented on the quality of speeches and standard of behaviour of MPs of the previous Parliament.

It seems the voters keep sending the wrong people to represent them in the national legislature, or they have Hobson's Choice considering the candidates presented to them by the different political parties.