“Rs. 600 million, seven trustees, a soapopera succession plan — and the government still calls it “orderly reform.”

The government is finally taking a long, hard look at Ambuluwawa — not the lush mountain itself, mind you, but the trust that runs it. Reports in Silumina suggest that officials from the Ministry of Buddhasasana, the Ministry of Justice, and the Attorney General’s Department have begun quietly dusting off legal drafts, contemplating amendments to the 2009 Trust Act, after questions were raised about the administration of public funds.

Ambuluwawa’s governing law is clear, at least on paper. The Ambuluwawa Disanayaka Mudiyanselage Jayaratne Religious Centre and Biodiversity Complex Trust Act No. 44 of 2009 lays down a tidy while framework:

The founder is the late Disanayaka Mudiyanselage Jayaratne, succession passes to his son, and then down the eldest male line. The trust is overseen by a board of seven trustees appointed by the founder. Simple, neat, and, as we now know, highly negotiable in practice.

Critics allege that several of the Act’s conditions have been treated more as suggestions than mandates. Land allocations, administrative decisions, and the deployment of development funds have all come under scrutiny. More than Rs. 600 million in public money has been poured into Ambuluwawa projects — projects that, according to auditors, appear to have left more questions than answers.