Medamulana power greedy maniac’s Rs. 28 million election campaign bills settled by abysmally suffering nation

(Lanka-e-News -26.July.2015, 11.30PM) Percy Mahendra Rajapakse the Medamulana crazed power greedy maniacal ex president who was thrown out lock, stock and barrel by the people recently , is now unashamedly stooping to the lowliest of levels to enter parliament as just an  opposition M.P. Lanka e news is in receipt of information supported by evidence which explains why this shameless brutal erstwhile president is descending to this disgraceful level at much cost to his pride. 

It has now come to light that this maniacal power craze of Mahinda Rajapakse is motivated by the succulent taste he experienced  from gobbling up colossal people’s funds during his reign.One of the many instances of his profligacy and  massive public fund misappropriation is the unlawful payments made to meet his unimaginably high hotel bills in December last year .

These bills have not been met by the funds set aside for the president’s expenditure , but out of funds of the BMICH which has nothing to do with Mahinda. Hence this  is a most disdainful , deplorable and deceitful public fund misappropriation. Nearly Rs. 28 million of the BMICH funds had been wasted most unconscionably , selfishly and ruthessly by this Medamulana power greedy maniac  with scant regard for the country’s economy or the people whose funds this machiavellian ex president  had ruthlessly sent down the drain while the masses   are hard pressed to have even one square meal a day.
 
Based on this rudely shocking revelation , on some days , this brutal corrupt deposed president has spent Rs. 400,000.00 per day on three hotels where he stayed (vide  bill herein of   24 th December 2014.) 

On another day similarly as his ‘minor’ expenditure he has paid nearly Rs. 600,000.00 per day on three hotels. (vide bill herein of 2014-12-12 for Rs. 590,700.00 ). All these payments have been made in cash- cleanly sans rubber coated checks.

When it was probed why these payments were made out of BMICH funds to meet Mahinda’s hotel bills , it was discovered , at that time , the president  of that fund was Bandula Ekanayake who was an officer associated with Rajapakse family meals and supplies.

Hence , uncaringly and unscrupulously , Mahinda’s bills had been unlawfully paid out of BMICH funds assuming that Mahinda is the high and mighty, his fraudulent propensities  and misappropriation of State funds notwithstanding. Going by the bills shown herein , it is clear that most of these unlawful payments have been disbursed on account  of Mahinda’s last presidential election campaign.

It is learnt that  BMICH has sent the bills to the presidential secretariat to recover these monies. In other words Mahinda Rajapakse’s unlawful bills are to be met out of people’s monies.In that case how can monies of the people being siphoned off for his election campaign be fair ?  Therefore shouldn’t these public  monies that were wasted by Mahinda be recovered from his personal wealth ? 

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by     (2015-07-26 20:35:39)

August promises and contenders: UNF for 5 points in 5 years; JVP offers Accord of Conscience; UPFA? 

New Left Opposition

by Rajan Philips-July 25, 2015, 7:11 pm

The August election is a non-issue election in the traditional sense. There are no burning constitutional, economic, or ethno-national issues in the campaign. The 19th Amendment for all its imperfections has put a lid on the constitutional debate in this election. The economy is a serious matter, but there is no serious debate over the economy other than the unedifying bickering about the Central Bank bond scandal. So is the Tamil question, but there is studied silence about it, almost an August calm before the September storm. As in January, the August election is again about corruption and is a second referendum on Mahinda Rajapaksa. He asked for the first and got the verdict in January, and has forced the appeal against it in August. But the August appeal is not catching as much public fire as the January trial did.

August Promises and Contenders UNF for 5 Points in 5 Years JVP Offers Accord of Conscience UPFA by Thavam Ratna

UNFGG’s blueprint for greener pastures; JVP leads for economic liberation, welfare

Sunday, July 26, 2015
The United National Front for Good Governance (UNFGG) and the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) released their manifestos this week, outlining their plans for the development of many sectors in the country, if they are elected to power. The UNFGG, in a programme to be implemented over a period of 60 months, pledged more jobs, better housing and health facilities, as well as sound environment polices, if it is elected.

UNFGG’s Blueprint for Greener Pastures JVP Leads for Economic Liberation, Welfare by Thavam Ratna

Overseas Sinhala Extremist Brigade

By Shyamon Jayasinghe –July 25, 2015

Shyamon Jayasinghe

“There are no “white” or “coloured” signs on the graveyards of battle.” John F Kennedy

Can individuals see themselves through the prism of their common humanity? Looking at almost every society today this seems a far way off.Racism is a contemporary reality and it does no good but creates welts and deep wounds in the body politic.

The funny irony is that racism is a myth.

Living and thinking over two thousand five hundred years ago the Buddha (Vaseththa Sutta) emphatically undermined racism as a myth. “Both the Theravada as well as the Mahayana schools of Buddhism speak of man in the context of a larger concourse of sentient beings.” (KN Jayatilleka & GP Malalasekera). One would expect,therefore, the Sinhala Buddhist to shy away from this evil. Yet, irony follows irony and the answer is “no.”

Many of the more articulate Sinhalese living overseas appear to be fanning racism feverishly. When it comes to parting with their money for the cause,however, they are not as unstinting as their parallel racist Tamil brethren.These days, I have been at the receiving end of a stream of emails from such overseas Sinhala extremists. Strangely, some of them belong to the learned community.The mental focus of these individuals is still where we were in 1956-60. They raise tedious arguments about the ratios of the two communities and about how the government should “fairly” deal with the issue. By “fairly,” they mean fairly to the Sinhala community. Constitutional clause 13A has become a big noisy issue. Now, with the elections on, the spectre of the LTTE invading Lanka is being artificially conjured up by these persons. These guys are predominantly adorers of Mahinda Rajapaksa,who is hailed by them with the cliched slogan, “a leader with a backbone.”

Identity is the foremost issue to the Sinhala Diaspora because in their host countries they are bewildered and confused with a perceived loss of identity. They perceive themselves as deemed ‘inferior.’ I live in Australia but I do not experience anything near inferior treatment. It is perception and not realty; but the perception eats into their being, I suppose. Another proximate factor is the presence of Tamil racists in big numbers; many of them in the vanguard of the LTTE Diaspora. Read More

National Education Policy: Professionals should design it and take its ownership 

Education is too important to be left to politicians who are not experts on the subject

 Monday, 27 July 2015

An important TV talk show on national education policy
In a recent TV talk show on what should be the country’s national education policy, a selected group of politicians from main political parties had been seated on the stage. Presumably, it would have been thought that it was necessary to seat them on the stage to pick their brains on how the national education policy should be framed.

National Education Policy Professionals Should Design It and Take Its Ownership by Thavam Ratna

Billions Busted On RDA Office

By Nirmala Kannangara- Sunday, July 26, 2015

The former regime under Mahinda Rajapaksa had spent over 2.4 billion (Rs. 2,488,538,628.06) to construct a luxurious head office complex for the Road Development Authority (RDA) in Pelawatte.

The RDA comes under the purview of the Highways Ministry and Mahinda Rajapaksa was the subject minister until the fall of his regime on January 8.

“Although the RDA was housed in a spacious section in Sethsiripaya, what made Rajapaksa to spend lavishly on this luxurious building when there were many burning issues in the country,” RDA sources said. However, the present Minister of Highways, Kabir Hashim says that it was surprising as to how much the previous regime had spent on one building when this money could have been used to build houses for the homeless.

“Unfortunately, the tax payers’ money had been spent on unnecessary projects when this money could have been utilized to provide houses for the homeless. As this is a huge and luxurious building, the minister is looking out for options to rent out part of the building and the income could be utilized for a worthy cause,” a ministry communiqué said.

The Sunday Leader is in possession of the document which details the breakdown of construction expenses of this luxury building, where Rajapaksa, as the subject minister, was to have his office. According to the detailed bill Rs. 2,034.095 million had been spent on contract payments to Nawaloka, while the Urban Development Authority (UDA) charge for the project were Rs. 6.825 million.

“Another Rs. 69.058 million had been paid to purchase assets according to the bill and Rs. 3.378 lakhs for the Kaduwela Municipal Council. To supply and to plant flower plants and Malaysian grass, it had cost Rs. 2.65 lakhs and to supply and install paving blocks, another Rs. 7.60 lakhs had been spent,” sources added.

According to the cost details, to lay the foundation stone and plaque for the opening ceremony Rs. 4.575 million had been spent and another Rs. 80.729 million had been spent as the Consultancy fee for the University of Moratuwa. As security deposit and connection charges for the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB), Rs. 6.219 million had been spent.

The security deposit for piped water connection to the National Water Supply and Drainage Board was Rs.1 million and for the Central Environmental Authority, Rs. 11,424 had been spent.

“Interior timber partitioning and flooring works in Level 10 had cost yet Rs. 38.732 million and for interior partitioning for other levels, another Rs. 24.677 million had been spent. For the partitioning, ceiling and furniture works related to interior fittings, another Rs. 200.378 million had been spent and Rs. 2.96 lakhs had been paid to install a water pump,” sources claimed.

Meanwhile, Rs. 4.934 had been spent for electricity, water and security while advertisements for security and interior works, another Rs. 1.39 lakhs had been spent and Rs. 2.35 lakhs for administrative expenses while Rs. 7.267 million had been spent to lay the foundation stone and the opening ceremony.

“The total cost paid up to June 15, 2015 is Rs. 2,488.538 million and a few more floors have to be completed and it will cost more to the government. According to the detailed bill, Rs. 4.575 million has been spent to lay the foundation stone and plaque for the opening ceremony and another Rs. 7.267 million had been paid to lay the foundation stone and for the opening ceremony. As payments have been paid twice for the same purpose, it is up to the government auditors to check whether they have put two bills for the same purpose,” sources said.

War secrets out with Wimal’s claim!

Sunday, 26 July 2015 

Various quarters in the Army are in a tight spot following the claim made recently by NFF leader, Colombo district UPFA candidate Wimal Weerawansa with regard to the white van seized by Mirihana police, say Army sources.

Former defence secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa and ex-Army commander Daya Ratnayake had both personally asked Weerawansa not to make that particular exposure, but he had not listened to him and exposed it with the motive of collecting a few more votes at the election. Top military officials say his revelation of intelligence information, which he had received officially as a minister when Gotabhaya was the defence secrerary, was a betrayal of the Army

The Army has taken over around 700 vehicles used by the LTTE in Kilinochchi during the war. All those vehicles had fake number plates, and the Army has been using the vehicles without changing them. For example, the white van seized by Mirihana police bears the no. WP JH 9244, which the department of motor traffic had issued to a double cab owned by Engineering Construction Pvt. Ltd. on 14 August 2014. But, the LTTE had been using that same number previously. Accordingly, all the 700 vehicles now under the custody of the Army have fake number plates.

Weerawansa’s exposure, knowing all these well, amounts to treason, the military believes. As a minister of the previous regime, he is in the possession of sensitive information with regard to the Army, and he is to reveal all those for his political gains. Gotabhaya has now become dejected and helpless, after supplying the information to Weerawansa.

Galewala: Shocked residents recall principal turned ISIS member

By Chandani Kirinde in Galewala-Sunday, July 26, 2015

He was the principal of an international school in the bustling town of Galewala along the Dambulla – Kurunegala Road.
For two years, he taught English to some 70 students on the upper floor of a two-storeyed building. When the classes were over, he turned instructor to groups of students who learnt karate.

Mohamed Muhsin Sharhaz Nilam:The much-loved karate teacher cum principal during a class (left) and above with students

Mohamed Muhsin Sharhaz Nilam (37) was known only for those traits by students, parents and friends alike. One day in January this year, he bid farewell to all of them and declared he was headed for a pilgrimage to Mecca. No one heard of him since then until news broke out that Nilam had been killed in an air strike in Syria on July 12. He was being identified as a member of the deadly ISIS or the terror group fighting for the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.

Muslims in Galewala, who knew him as teacher and karate master, are in shock but remain tight lipped. I spoke to the international school owner who recruited him. “A friend of mine who had been engaged with him in charity work in the Muslim community in several areas of the country recommended him and we hired him,” he told me. However, he insisted that he should not be identified.

Even parents did not wish their identities to be known. One was in tears as he said, “We heard of the death of our principal sir.”
Others were even more reluctant to associate themselves with Nilam. A sense of fear appears to have forced them into silence.

I learnt from conversations that Nilam was fluent in Arabic. He had studied the language while in Pakistan. This is in addition to Sinhala and Tamil. Before joining the international school in Galewala, he had served in Colombo as a teacher. Nilam did leave behind suspicions in some minds. He came to the international school in Galewala with a lap top computer and worked on it for long hours. No one, however, suspected anything was wrong.

H.M.J.Herath: The new principal

“In mid-2013, a few months after he joined us, he left for Mecaa. He was offered a free trip there as he was engaged in charity work. He returned after about two weeks and there was nothing amiss,” said a staffer at the international school. He also spoke on grounds of anonymity.

The staffer said, “In December last year, he asked for some money to take his parents on a pilgrimage to Mecca. However, later he had asked for his December salary in advance and left saying he would return before school reopens in January. In between he had paid a visit to the school when his assistance was sought to obtain some text books from Colombo.”

Nilam, I learnt, lived with his wife and children in a rented house close to the Galewela town. We heard he has six children. Two of the children attended the same school. The entire family had left along with him last December.

The school staffer said “The only fault he had was that he reported late to school every day and this was a drawback. Other than that he was much liked by every one,” the administrator said.H.M.J.Herath, the new principal said he had met the man once. “My granddaughter attends this school and sometime last year there was a function at the school to felicitate some students who had attended a karate tournament in India and had won some medals.

“Here we exchanged a few pleasantries but that is all the contact I have had with him,” Mr. Hearth said. “He did not talk much with anyone but was polite to everyone,” he said. In Colombo, the Muslim community reacted in shock. The Jamiathul Ulema said in a statement that they did not condone violence of any sort and said violence is unacceptable in any form in Islam.

A special Police team under DIG –Crimes Colombo has completed the preliminary investigations into the background of NIlam and have confirmed that the man killed in Syria was indeed one and the same person even though initially there were doubts about his identity. It has also been found that one of his brothers identified as Mohamed Aroos is working in Syria even though it has not yet been established if he too is a member of the ISIS.

They have also interviewed many of his acquaintances but they too seem to have been ignorant about his double life.
Police say the man had left for Saudi Arabia in the pretext of going on pilgrimage to Mecca and then crossed over to Syria. They are now working with the Foreign Ministry to establish how he may have made his way across to Syria. He had operated in Syria under the name of Abu Suren Silani and it is reported that news of his death was uploaded on the social media network Facebook by his brother Mohamed Aroos who has lived in Syria for around four years.

Meanwhile Cabinet spokesman Dr Rajitha Senaratne said Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe has instructed the police to conduct a thorough investigation into the incident as the, “Government has a responsibility to inquire if there is a perceivable threat to the country from the ISIS or any other similar group”.

25 notorious heroin peddlers in UPFA list..! Dangerous drugs board chairman makes shocking exposure..!!

(Lanka-e-News -26.July.2015, 11.30PM) It is revealed that 25 of Island’s most notorious heroin peddlers are contesting the up coming elections under the UPFA. This shocking revelation was made by no less a person than the  Dangerous drugs control board chairman Dr. Chameera Nilanga Samarasinghe . Latter disclosed this when he was met by a group of  SLFP lawyers  , based on reports reaching Lanka e news inside information division.

Dr. Samarasinghe made this startling and stigmatic exposure yesterday when he was met by a group of lawyers of the SLFP including  D.P. Mendis PC, and lawyer Sanjaya Gamage .Previously Dr. Samarasinghe announced ,from the name list of heroin peddlers available with the  board , 25 heroin dealers were contesting elections .When the SLFP lawyers met with him  and requested to inform under which political party these drug barons are seeking parliamentary representation , and  if he does not expose these particulars that would be unfair by the other parties . 

It is noteworthy in the  name lists of candidates of the UNP and the JVP forwarded to him , these 25 drug dealers are not there implying that these drug peddlers belong to the list of candidates of the UPFA.

When the SLFP lawyers asked for that list , the chairman of the dangerous drugs control board told them that he has communicated this to the president , and the latter has already given him an opportunity  to meet him, while adding that the president would reveal the names of these drug dealers .

Dr.Samarasinghe went on to inform the SLFP lawyers , among these aforementioned drug barons , three of them are from Gampaha district list.When Sanjaya Gamage heard this , his face went red as a beetroot for he has been appearing in a case on behalf of one such IRC  drug baron.

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by     (2015-07-26 20:38:21)

CIPI Report Handed Over to IGP: Fresh Probe Into Welikada Riots

26/07/2015

The report on the 2012 Welikada prison riots has been handed over to the Inspector General of Police (IGP) to launch fresh criminal investigations into the incident, Minister of Justice, Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe told the Sunday Observer.

The Committee of Inquiry into the Prison Incident 2012 (CIPI), appointed by Rajapakshe in January this year, to inquire into the 2012 November Welikada prison incident, recommended that a special team of investigators, under the direct command of the IGP, initiate fresh criminal investigations into the incident, with special focus on alleged violations corresponding to torture and matters that constitutes offences under section 162 of the penal Code.

The investigation was recommended with a view to identifying and dealing with public servants who have disobeyed the direction of the law which constitute the offences.

The Committee, headed by retired Supreme Court Judge Wimal Nambuwasam, and comprising retired DIG Asoka Wijetillake, retired administrative official and attorney S.K. Liyanage, handed over its report to Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe in early June.

Asked whether the content of the report will be made public, Minister Rajapakshe said the recommendations had been made public, but not the contents as it would hamper ongoing or fresh investigations into the incident.

The Sunday Observer learns that CIPI in its 300 paged report has concluded that the search conducted by using Police Special Task Force, which later precipitated the incident, is highly uncalled for and unwarranted, and termed the incident as a gross violation of widely accepted norms and procedures with regard to prisoners.

In its conclusions, CIPI had pointed out that the incident should have ideally been managed by the Prison authorities without seeking outside assistance, as this was their sole responsibility. It is in this context that the CIPI had recommended the Police be exclusively used to discharge their prime role and that the prison authorities independently manage their prime responsibilities.

The Sunday Observer also learns that the CIPI had recommended that the findings of the previous committee appointed in 2012 be totally annulled, as the new findings had revealed apparent conflict of interest due to disclosures by witnesses and other related factors.

by Ranil Wijayapala
SO

Monk, policeman die in rebel bomb attack in south Thailand

File photo shows police and forensic experts inspecting the site of a bomb attack in the southern province of Pattani, Thailand, on July 13, 2015. Three soldiers were injured in the explosion. On July 25, 2015, a monk and a policeman died in another bomb attack. – Reuters pic

HAT YAI, July 25, 2015:

A Buddhist monk and a Thai policeman were killed and six other people wounded in a bomb attack Saturday by suspected Muslim insurgents in southern Thailand, police said.

The bomb was remotely detonated in Pattani province, targeting monks who were receiving alms during a Buddhist ritual and police officers guarding them, said Col. Panya Karawanan, chief of Saiburi police station.

He said a monk and an officer were killed. The wounded included another monk, two police and three civilians.

Pattani is one of three Muslim-majority provinces in predominantly Buddhist Thailand. More than 5,000 people have been killed since an Islamic insurgency began in the region in 2004. Most victims have been Muslims, but insurgents have been increasingly targeting Buddhists — including monks — in an apparent campaign to drive them from the area.

Since the violence started, 19 monks have been killed and 25 wounded in attacks in southern Thailand, according to the regional police operation centre.

The insurgents have not issued specific demands but are generally believed to be fighting for an independent Muslim state.

“It’s Raining Missiles. A Nightmare that Refuses to End!” – Testimony from the War in Yemen

Yemenis want to be heard. They need to be heard. Thus I have asked Yemeni friends of mine, men and women, to tell their stories, to give a personal account of their experiences of the war in Yemen and to send me pictures that illustrate their texts. I will post them here on this website, one by one. I hope their writing will have an impact.

by one. I hope their writing will have an impact.

By Helene Aecherli-July 23, 2015

Layla M. Asda (26) is doing her Master in International Development and Gender at the university of Sana’a. She is ready to take her country forward. But she is stranded in the war. As million of other young Yemenis. In her  text she gives a painfully detailed account of how the war affects her and her country. And she appeals to the war faring fractions to realise that there is no point of waging wars. It only creates destruction, hatred and the urge for revenge.

“It’s raining!” I felt happy because “rain is what I adore”, I thought to myself as I heard the sounds of thunder. Yes, it turned out to be rain – but a different kind of rain: It was raining missiles!

“It’s Raining Missiles. a Nightmare That Refuses to End!” – Testimony From the War in Yemen by Thavam Ratna

Assad: Syrian regime is short of troops and losing ground

SUNDAY 26 JULY 2015

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad admits his forces are suffering from a "shortfall in human capacity" as Turkey launches airstrikes against the Islamic State group.

In an outspoken assessment of the state of Syria's four-year civil war, Assad conceded that forces loyal to his regime cannot hold on to territory across the country as it attempts to fight multiple insurgent groups.

Since March, the Syrian government has lost most of the northwestern province of Idlib to an Islamist alliance including the al Qaeda-backed Nusra Front, and important areas of the south along the border with Jordan to mainstream rebel groups of the "Southern Front".

Islamic State insurgents seized the central city of Palmyra from the Syrian military in May.

But Assad's army still has footholds in the northeast, the east and the south, as well as Syria's second city Aleppo.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says the Syrian government controls no more than 25 per cent of the country territorially, with the rest divided among armed groups including Islamic State, other rebel groups and Kurdish militia.

But the main government-controlled areas include major population centres like Damascus, Homs, Hama, and the coastal region forming the heartland of his Alawite sect.

In a televised speech, the president told Syrians: "Sometimes, in some circumstances, we are forced to give up areas to move those forces to the areas that we want to hold on to.

"We must define the important regions that the armed forces hold onto so it doesn't allow the collapse of the rest of the areas.

"From a military point of view, holding to this area, or that patch, would lead to the recovery of the other areas."

He added: "Everything is available (for the army), but there is a shortfall in human capacity. Despite that, I am not presenting a dark picture."

Assad said increased support from states backing the rebels, including Turkey, was the reason for military setbacks that had created "a state of despair" among Syrians.

Hezbollah thanked

For the first time, Assad publicly credited the Lebanese group Hezbollah, which is fighting alongside the Syrian Army, but said his ally Iran's role was limited to sending military experts.

Some analysts think the military pressure on Assad could force a political deal that would see Assad step down.

But he struck a defiant tone, saying any political proposal for resolving the war must be based on "eliminating terrorism" - a term he has used for all the rebel forces arrayed against him.

Turkish airstrikes

After showing reluctance to play an active role in the international coalition against the Islamic State insurgency, Turkey announced last week that it would let allow US-led air forces to use its air bases.

But Ankara also launches simultaneous strikes against the Kurdish separatist group PKK, allied to Syrian Kurdish forces fighting the Islamic State.

Kurdish militants appeared to retaliate on Sunday, killing two Turkish soldiers with a roadside bomb.

US ambassador Brett McGurk said in Twitter posts that there was "no connection" between Turkish air strikes againts the PKK and "recent understandings to intensify US-Turkey cooperation against #ISIL".

He added that America had "strongly condemned the #PKK’s terrorist attacks in #Turkey and we fully respect our ally Turkey’s right to self-defense".

Pentagon Funds Cutting Edge Aquatic Terrain System (ATS)

Pilot Program will Begin in US Pacific Command

by John Stanton

( July 25, 2015, Virginia, Sri Lanka Guardian) In an exclusive interview with General Joseph Dunford, likely to be Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on 1 October 2015, he discussed the Pentagon’s newest and boldest program: The Aquatic Terrain System (ATS). “Look. With a successful ATS we could joint-operate with Black Sea Sprat and F-&^% with Russia’s Black Sea Fleet. But first we have to understand the way they operate and what they want in return for working with us. It’s a plus-plus situation. 

Pentagon Funds Cutting Edge Aquatic Terrain System (ATS) by Thavam Ratna