The Public Trustee Department is an incorporated body created by the Public Trustees Ordinance No. 1 of 1922. By this Act, the post of Public Trustee became a regular post. The Department of Public Trustee is one of the leading independent institutions in Sri Lanka.
No matter how many Government officials there are in the country, the Chief Trustee is the foremost non-commissioned official. If we look at hierarchy, the seventh citizen of the country is the officer who holds the position of Public Trustee.
This Department assigns all responsibilities assigned in one’s last will to the owners. The Public Trustee Department is an important institution in the country. Although it works as a trustee institution in general, it also carries out many activities with regard to social welfare.
A judge or an officer of the highest level in the field of law is appointed for the main position of the General Trusteeship Department, which is especially dedicated to many welfare functions including education welfare. Although there are various high positions, the most independent person in the country is the Public Trustee. Citizens have absolute faith in them. No one in society has the kind of trust that the Public Trustee has. Presently, Former High Court Judge Gihan Pilapitiya is acting as the Public Trustee of the Public Trustee Department.
Long-standing issues
Efforts have also been made to resolve various long-standing issues to control coercive abuses and properly hand over all properties belonging to the Grand Trustee to his control. Many special measures have been taken to resolve various problems that have existed for a long time. The reason why all this work has become so successful is because of the work of the Public Trustee, Deputy Public Trustees and other officers and staff.
The Public Trustee educated us on the functions of his office.
Our sole purpose is to properly maintain the purpose of establishing the Public Trustee Department. We have a set of basic policies. The proper implementation of those policies is our main goal. I hold the independent position of Chief Public Trustee. The post is actually an independent and non-affiliated post in the country.
Not only do I have that faith in the whole Department, our goal is to continue to run this Department as a team. The building where the Department is located cannot be moved to another place. The building where the Department is housed belonged to the former statesman Sir D.B. Jayathilike. He also made a pledge that this trust should be reserved for educational purposes only.
Do you have a way of managing this Department?
This Department does not work alone but as a team. The staff of the General Trust Department as well as other people support us. Former judge M.Z.M. Amjad acts as my legal advisor. Major Madhava Abeysundara volunteered with the Department of Public Trustee and is carrying out a great task.
Is there a broad understanding among the people of the country about the role of the General Trust Department?
I believe that all Sri Lankans generally accept the Department of Public Trustee and its role. That is why they give their properties that have great financial and traditional value to our Department. People are trusted to protect a property entrusted to this Department in a very reliable manner and that trust will be maintained even after their death. Indeed, this can be mentioned as a very important thing.
We then asked the Public Trustee whether the people in the North-Eastern regions have an understanding of the functions of the Department.
Close relationship
We visited the North with Amjad. There we were able to establish a close relationship with the people there. Now we have received invitations to visit those areas again. In fact, it’s not just the common people in the North; even many Government officials have no understanding of the functions of the Public Trustee. We have great confidence that we will be able to change that situation. Our Department has been able to invest the money received from the properties we have and spend the money received for what is needed for the social good.
By Uditha Gunawardena
We have mentioned only the role of the General Trustee Department and the system maintained there. But there are many places where the Department does not have jurisdiction, despite their authority. A national newspaper highlighted a case where a woman acquired property worth billions of rupees by working with those in the Department. There have been many cases of such misdeeds. The Public Trustee has done many things to resolve disputes about many such properties. Among them, there are cases that are being prosecuted.
The illegal squatter has not only been occupying a land with more than sixty perches of a house in Horton Place, Colombo for nearly twenty years, but has also arranged to rent out the property. It is said that they have collected a monthly rent of Rs.1.8 million per month. Until now, it was not possible to acquire this huge property which was legally owned by the Public Trustee Department.
But Madhava Abeysundara, a retired major who works voluntarily with the Public Trustee Department, has gone with the Police and requisitioned this valuable property. This is just one example. There are many other properties with high market value in Colombo. We have planned to acquire these places and hand them over to the Department.
All these tasks and necessary support to Pilapitiya, the Public Trustee, are provided by his Deputy Public Trustees, Gauri Karavita and Karunaratne. The Department building has been in a dilapidated condition recently. But with the support of the Army’s Engineering Corps, the building is being restored and preserved.
It should be noted that important independent and non-affiliated government departments of this country should be maintained in a way that is suitable for the new century and established with good objectives. The goals of establishing this Department are now being realised as the Department has started a journey to move forward as one group and not in different small groups.
Translated by Jonathan Frank
Pix by Chinthaka Kumarasinghe
