Ex-Minister Manusha Nanayakkara responds to accusations over ‘E-8 visa’ issue

Allegations of illegal financial gains connected to the contentious ‘E8 visa’ scheme have been directed at former Minister of Labour and Foreign Employment, Manusha Nanayakkara. 

Kosala Wickramasinghe, Chairman of the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE), levelled these accusations during Ada Derana’s current affairs programme “Big Focus,” earlier today (25).  

Addressing the issue, Wickramasinghe claimed, “It is problematic why a recognized minister of the government gets involved in a scheme that amounted to human trafficking. There is a lot of suspicion. We can suspect that the minister made illegal profits. We do not have evidence at the moment. We are collecting information.”  

He further stated, “There are teams and legal mechanisms in place. This is not just about the E8 visa issue—there are many other issues under investigation.” 

Speaking at a press conference held this morning, Wickramasinghe also alleged that the ‘E8 visa’ system was illegally maintained without proper employment contracts, reportedly due to the direct intervention of a former minister. 

According to the SLBFE, the issuance of E8 visas for short-term seasonal employment in South Korea lacks a legal framework.  

In response to the allegations, Manusha Nanayakkara defended his actions, emphasizing his efforts to secure employment opportunities for Sri Lankans. 

He explained, “I personally went and requested these people to provide us with this E8 visa category. Accordingly, they made arrangements to provide this E8 visa category to Sri Lanka as well.”

The former minister attributed the scheme’s delays to certain officers within the bureau, stating, “Due to the behavior and actions of certain officers of the bureau since two or three weeks before the election, it was not finally implemented. It can be implemented even now. If implemented, it is an opportunity to obtain thousands of new jobs”.  

Nanayakkara urged the government to reconsider the program, asserting, “We tell the government, and the Prime Minister, don’t lose this. It is not the people I chose politically; there are people all over Sri Lanka. Give anyone the opportunity to go abroad.”