How can sauce for gander (sister) be poison for goofy goose Lahiru ?

Not attacking ministry with iron rods is my regret – JVP MP Handunetti

(Lanka-e-News - 24.June.2017, 11.30PM)   The convener of the Inter University students  Federation and  a member of the Peratugami socialist party Lahiru Weerasekera , convener of the Inter Bhikkhu federation council Tempitiye Sugathananda , and a student of the Moratuwa University Faizal Ahamed were arrested in connection with the forcible entry into Health ministry and for causing damage to property to   the tune of many millions of rupees .These culprits who wrought  this havoc while demanding the disclosure of SAITM were arrested by the police , and remanded until the 5 th of July  after they were produced before court.

Sugathananda was arrested on the 23 rd , while Lahiru and Faizal were arrested today when they were leaving after a media discussion convened  by them  . They were charged with causing damage to State  property which is a non bailable offence. 

Lahiru after attacking and damaging the health ministry , addressing a media briefing said , they are not hurt by  the police attack , but they are hurt because they could not attack the policemen wearing helmets  until their helmets were smashed into smithereens.

Interestingly , the elder sister Thilini Weerasekera of Lahiru (the  leader of the Peratugami socialist students  party who is very  vociferous against private medical university )  is a  B.Sc. graduate of the 2010 batch of students of the SLIT private University  . Yet , this moron Lahiru does not seem to understand his own self destructive policy to the detriment of the country vis a vis  his own sister who preferred a degree from a private University .  Hence, it is an irony of ironies , it is such an eccentric who cannot put his own house in order who is trying  to crusade against private medical Universities .
 
The damages caused to the Health ministry has not been assessed yet .Even the reception counter had been totally destroyed. The iron gates , iron doors , windows , doors and the attendance recording finger print device too have been damaged. Consequently , the employees of the ministry staged a protest on the 23 rd  demanding that all those responsible for causing this monumental damage be arrested immediately. 

Meanwhile, the rowdy secretary of the GMOA ( goofy goon doctors) , Nalin Herath (who said he does not remember his GCE adv. Level results) speaking today (23) justified  the violence of the hooligan students , and  encouraged them to take arms. According to legal luminaries ,  Herath can be arrested under the penal code  based on this dangerous statement .

The students of Ruhunu University staged protests on 22 nd  and 23 rd in Galle and Matara. These wild and violent students attacked two individuals and damaged their cameras on the 22 nd and 23 rd alleging that they took photographs of their protests. According to the marauding students only those with media identity cards can take photographs   , and all others are police informants. These student morons and marauders do not even know that anybody has   a  right  to photograph any protests staged publicly. While themselves are not recognizing that basic democratic right of a citizen  , these same student morons and marauders are at the same time demanding democracy and freedom. How ludicrous  ! 

During the debate in parliament pertaining to the attack on the health ministry , the higher education minister Lakshman Kiriella who participated in the debate said , the students who attacked the ministry of health were not unarmed , and they carried iron rods , and it is with those weapons the vehicles were damaged. 

M.P. Sunil Handunetti  of the JVP (most notorious for sacrificing precious lives of youths due to  their foolish and failed insurrections ) who could not  even win at  elections, and crept into parliament through the national list said in his characteristic style  , he is full of remorse that those student marauders  could not carry those weapons. 

When Dinesh Gunawardena of the joint opposition said SAITM should be closed , Kiriella pointed out SAITM was not launched by this government  , and it is Dinesh Gunawardena who tabled the SAITM bill in parliament for ratification instead  of S.B. the then higher education minister .

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by     (2017-06-25 02:02:32)

A new play

Gnanasara Thero

by Sanjana Hattotuwa-June 24, 2017, 6:19 pm 

The theatre of racism does not entertain coincidence. When the Mahanayake of the Asgiriya Chapter, following a meeting of the Karaka Sangha Sabha, issues a statement and the very next day, Gnanasara Thero of the BBS, after over a month in hiding and with two arrest warrants against him, surrenders to the courts, one sees a plan, process, purpose and indeed, peril.

Despite official statements around coexistence, diversity and religious tolerance by the Prime Minister and Cabinet of Ministers, coupled with the surveillance and investigative powers of the entire Police force and our intelligence services, Gnanasara Thero remained hidden until he was ready to come out. The verbal acrobatics of the Police spokesperson when grilled by the media clearly suggests the Thero enjoys the protection of powerful politicians and political elements. The Thero may well be, unknown to himself, a pawn in a greater game. The context that led to surrender, and his subsequent kid-glove treatment by the Police, mark disturbing and dangerous trends that will undermine the January 8 promise of fully realizing Sri Lanka’s democratic potential. The events of last week also indicate a hidden pulsating power grid, within and outside of government, discernible only by looking at the systemic collapse around a clear, coherent response to what is clearly a fascist threat. The head of this snake is the BBS, but its venom writhes and slithers through the veins of government.

The statement by the Mahanayake of the Asgiriya Chapter is unprecedented. Even at the height of the anti-Muslim violence under the Rajapaksa regime, almost three years ago to date in Aluthgama, the chief prelates of maintained a silence and distance from Gnanasara Thero, affording at best a rare audience. They didn’t condemn. They didn’t condone. They just didn’t engage. And while their silence was damning enough, allowing the space for the BBS to grow, the statement last week is a dramatic reversal in the dynamics of their engagement - and for the worse. English mainstream media, which featured the statement penned in Sinhala, focussed on a single sentence that noted the Karaka Sangha Sabha did not approve of the aggressive behavior and speech of Gnanasara Thero.

In his first interaction with the media after he was arrested, then released on bail, arrested again, and then re-released on bail, Gnanasara Thero indirectly references this concern, and says that the campaign henceforth will be in the hands of other monks, who are more civilized, cultured and well-mannered. What was a campaign of the BBS, in concert now with a statement by the Asgiriya Chapter, is now a campaign of all monks. This is congruent with the tone and thrust of the original statement, couched in a considered, even cunning Sinhala. A gentle knuckle rap on Gnanasara Thero is the entry point into what really is a statement that articulates and amplifies what the BBS has noted in the past.

It suggests that many are disrespectful of Gnanasara Thero, particularly in how they address him, and denounces this. It denounces the purported silencing and targeting of Buddhist monks who flag what they perceive to be racist comments by politicians. It denounces the introduction of what it says are new laws targeted against Sinhalese-Buddhists in Sri Lanka. It denounces what it says are acts conducted in the name of reconciliation, around the destruction of ancient archeological artifacts in the North and East, and the appropriation of protected lands. It calls for the intervention of the President. The statement rails against what it says are attempts in the media to destroy the Sinhala race, and reminds that it is the duty of the government to act in this regard. The statement says that there are those in the guise of Buddhists, speaking on behalf of Buddhist as well as non-Buddhists who are engaged in a concerted effort to destroy Buddhist culture and the Sinhalese.

It asks the government to hurriedly bring about and enact laws that address these concerns and protects the Buddhist culture and Buddhism. Its final point is the most chilling. The statement reminds all non-Buddhists that Sri Lanka’s Buddhist population has always protected and respected them. It condemns the acts of those, from other religions, who act against the core values of Buddhism and suggests that this destructive plot is also supported by various domestic and foreign forces. The statement ends on a rallying cry, noting that it is the duty of the Sangha and a patriotic public to stand up against the discrimination of the Sinhala-Buddhists.

To my knowledge, a full and accurate translation of the statement has not been published in any English media. This itself is revealing. The thrust and tone of this extraordinary statement, aimed at the majority community and religion in the country and with the powerful symbolic imprimatur of the Asgiriya Chapter, lays the foundation for the internalization of all the BBS stands for, by the sangha writ large. Those like the Ven. Dambila Thero, who have been openly against the BBS and Gnanasara Thero, and are now also in opposition to the Asgiriya Chapter and the Karaka Sangha Sabha, stand to be even more marginalized than they are today. The end result of developments this past week is to make the agenda, concerns, fears and targets of the BBS, the same as that which the Asgiriya Chapter and other senior monks will support, secure and indeed, strengthen. Mark how fundamentally different this response is to how in Myanmar, in May this year, the Sangha Maha Nayaka (MHN) Committee, a government-appointed group of monks responsible for regulating the country’s Buddhist clergy, announced a four-point order effectively banning Ma Ba Tha, the equivalent of the BBS.

This places Sri Lanka is a precarious situation, and to my mind, more incendiary than what it faced in 2014, which is saying a lot. The BBS may well have same electoral impact as the odious UKIP before the Brexit referendum, in that it moves the centre, fearful of losing a majority vote, far more towards the right and into a new normal that is in fact the cementing of fringe lunacy and continuation of deeply racist responses, structures and discrimination by the State against minorities. The pernicious political project isn’t in fact the generation of votes to enter Parliament. Rather, it is the rejection of an alternative future proposed at a referendum or any other electoral contest through uncertainty, fear and the generation of distrust around everything and everyone. To this end, far more than Gnanasara Thero and the BBS, it is the Asgiriya Chapter’s statement that I find deeply troubling, catapulting strained ethno-political relations in polity and society into a mine-field of uncertainty, ripe for spontaneous violence that can easily lead to sustained conflict.

That all this happens before a promised constitutional referendum is also not mere coincidence - it is the hacking of our democratic future by targeted, timely measures to undermine the government’s confidence and public standing. None of this is helped by those like the Minister of Justice, who is the equivalent of a computer virus that undermines and sets out to destroy a network from within it. In targeting lawyer Lakshan Dias for what he went on record saying in public using research also in the public domain, as well as for what the Minister has said, done and not done since his appointment, any statement, any project and any desire of government to meaningfully address racism today is a cruel joke as long as he holds the position he does.

Large sections of the Sinhala-Buddhist and even the Sinhala-Catholic communities are being primed to countenance, if not directly engage in violence against religious minorities and Muslims. Rwanda had Radio Télévision Libre des Mille Collines, broadcasting content that normalized hate, violence and othering. We saw in Aluthgama, three years ago, what impact a single rally could have around the incitement to violence. The stage is being readied for a new play. And in the wings are saffron guillotines, ready to be pushed centre-stage at any moment.

Sri Lanka: BBS — Bothersome baby!

While incitement to violence must be dealt with as a matter of law and order, oftentimes it is not dealt with because there is tacit and explicit support in government circles for the politics provoking the incitement. It is possible to draw neat lines in theory between political chauvinism and political violence, but the lines are invariably blurred in the real world.

by Rajan Philips-Jun 25, 2017

( June 25, 2017, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) In politics, all may not be well even when things seem to end well. The vicars of gods in Jaffna and diplomats in Colombo may have helped avert the spectacle of a No Confidence motion in the Northern Provincial Council. But Jaffna’s political circus is by no means over. The TNA’s relief will not last longer than the effect of its last migraine pill. There are media reports implicating the Chief Minister and his adviser from down under about funds received from expatriate Tamils and apparently gone unaccounted so far. And the Chief Minister is now reportedly targeting for dismissal the Chairman of the Council, CVK Sivagnanam, for lead-signing the petition to the Governor to remove the Chief Minister. The circus continues. The Northern Provincial Council came into being with quite an electoral bang, but its performance in office has been nothing more than a whimper. It has done nothing worth mentioning except passing high voltage resolutions on explosive topics. Having run out of resolution topics, the Council is now stuck between corruption scandals and procedural chicaneries.

Lost in the to-and-fro over the No Confidence motion are issues of corruption and Council procedures. The TNA leadership and the Chief Minister must address the quite serious allegations of corruption levelled against ministers by the Chief Minister and his supporters, and against the Chief Minister by many Councillors and even expatriate Tamils. As NPC elections are still a few years away, to clean up the mess by letting the people throw out the whole rotten lot, the rotten mangoes must now be dealt with, and dealt with according to procedures that are applicable to elected bodies and elected officials.

It seems odd that that elected Councillors could be investigated by an outside group of notables appointed by the Chief Minister. I am not intimately familiar with parliamentary conventions or the provisions of the Provincial Council legislation, but those who are must point out if what the Chief Minister in Jaffna has been doing is proper process. In fact, as a retired Judge of the Supreme Court, Mr. Vigneswaran owes it to the public to explain and confirm that the investigative process he has been following conforms with parliamentary conventions and the Provincial Council law. It should not be that because he was a Supreme Court Judge, the Chief Minister could hire and fire a minister the way – say Donald Trump does.

Aiders and Abetters of BBS

In the south, just as in the North, the debate and disagreement are not over anything positive or productive, but about who are and who are not among the benefactors and beneficiaries of Bodu Bala Sena. Whose enfant terrible is it? There is no one owning this bothersome baby of southern politics. Many are denying paternity while being accused of providing BBS protection at the highest levels of government. What began as a nuisance on the political fringes is now a menace at the centre of politics. No one will openly support it now, as Champika Ranawaka and Gotabhaya Rajapaksa allegedly did in the past. And no one will disavow or condemn it either, including the Prime Minister and the President. Not only should the two leaders openly and unequivocally condemn BBS, they should also make it clear to every minister and government parliamentarian that anyone having anything to do with BBS will be expelled from cabinet or the ‘unity’ government.

Let there be no illusion; the PM or the President will do nothing of the kind. But let us not stop insisting that they do so if only to expose the cynical duplicity of mainstream political leaders in dealing with organizations like the BBS. Most political leaders are ambivalent towards the BBS to avoid the risk of antagonizing the more extreme sections of the voting population. Unlike in the old parliamentary voting system, the preferential and presidential ‘electorates’ have given undue electoral weights to a plethora of disaggregated voting blocs defined by loyalties ranging from caste and kinship to ethno-religious extremism, bigotry and chauvinism. Short of changing the electoral framework, there is no other way to deal with this phenomenon except by pressurizing ‘mainstream’ political leaders, the Wickremasinghes, the Sirisenas and the Rajapaksas (Chandrika Kumaratunga will have no hesitation in doing this), to take an uncompromising stand against organizations like the BBS and call out their electoral bluff.

Apart from cynicism, there is also common ground between many mainstream political figures and the agenda of the BBS and its brotherhoods. Aspiring politicians were on BBS platforms earlier but are now allegedly extending support from within the cabinet or from the opposition outside. To the extent the Prime Minister and the President do not isolate and expose the hidden benefactors of BBS, they are only aiding and abetting its political lunacy and they too deserved to be condemned as cynical beneficiaries of BBS politics. Remember, they too are guilty who only stand and wait! Indeed, the present government has been sitting on its law-and-order hands for over two years and allowed the BBS to find its footing after losing it in the January 2015 presidential election, and re-establish its presence even more menacingly than it was in 2014.

While incitement to violence must be dealt with as a matter of law and order, oftentimes it is not dealt with because there is tacit and explicit support in government circles for the politics provoking the incitement. It is possible to draw neat lines in theory between political chauvinism and political violence, but the lines are invariably blurred in the real world. This is not to suggest that all chauvinists must be put in jail, but to warn that governments and mainstream political leaders who do not honestly and openly oppose political chauvinism will not have the stomach to firmly deal with those chauvinists who incite violence. When a government is silent in the face of virulent chauvinism, the law and order agencies will be confused about their role in dealing with inciters and executors of violence. This has been the political story so far of the genesis and growth of the BBS.

There are also the moral and social dimensions. From a moral standpoint, it is a copout to suggest that intolerant extremism can be tolerated so long as it is not inciting violence. That is to condone verbal violence while assuring that no physical violence will be tolerated. It doesn’t work that way. Verbal violence invariably motivates the more truculent elements in society to resort to physical violence against ‘others’ who are ethno-religiously different. These wing-nut elements do not need organization or coordination to attack those who are different and helpless. On the other hand, almost all of the violence perpetrated against Muslims and Christians has been well orchestrated and well organized.

What is the earthly reason for turning on Muslims and Christians? Which aspect of Sinhalese nationalism in its current manifestation is under threat from either of these groups? There was background to the political antagonism between the Sinhalese and the Tamils after independence, and the battles and wars that came out of it. What have the Christians and Muslims done after the LTTE was defeated to become the targets for the violent putt shots of the Bodu Bala Sena? The concern over Christian conversion is a false concern to justify native bigotry that has nothing to do with enlightened Buddhism. Equally, the apparent local reaction to international radical Islam is again the contrived handiwork of local busybodies. Islamist (NOT Islamic) terrorism in the Middle East and elsewhere is no reason to attack Muslims in Sri Lanka. It is not the Muslims who need to be told to ‘behave’, but it is the government that must tell the BBS to behave – befitting the ethos of Buddhism and abiding by the norms and values of a civilized society.

The contradictions of chauvinism can be hilarious if only they are not pregnant with violent consequences. The established opponents of the present government are virulently anti-Indian and passionately anti-Modi. Yet, many of them find common cause with Modi’s preposterous ban of cow-slaughter in India just to stick it to the Muslims in Sri Lanka. Even among Sri Lankan parliamentarians, there are those who will campaign on platforms against cow slaughter, but insist on eating pork in parliament to pamper their taste buds not caring that they are riling the sensibilities of Muslim MPs. Other mixed societies after long periods of open and subtle intolerance have developed ways of positively tolerating and appreciating the cultural differences among different peoples. The question is whether Sri Lanka that has experienced tolerance and appreciation of different religions at the social and folk levels for centuries, should now suffer the eruptions of religious intolerance because a few hundreds of miscreants cannot be put in their place by a spineless government?

The Return of the Prodigal Monk

Asgiriya Chapter rushes in to back rebel bhikkhu’s nationalist call after Sirisena says anti Muslim action is to topple his government

Sunday, June 25, 2017

Ah, just when one had wondered whether the absconding monk, that fugitive of justice, had renounced the pleasures of the world and sought refuge in some quiet corner of some dense thicket to meditate upon the wise counsel of the Buddha and seek alone his own path to redemption and not lead others down the garden path to incite racial hatred, Galagodaaththe Gnanasara emerged this Wednesday from his unknown kuti and surrendered to court and thus spared cops the blush of having being clueless as to his whereabouts.
Four police teams had been deployed to find him but for nearly a month his hideaway haven had kept the police baffled. Even a so called high tech definition sweep to round up similar fugitives had failed to reveal the secret den in which the runaway monk had meditated in.

The Return of the Prodigal Monk.docx by Thavam Ratna on Scribd

Most sublime rare dhamma padhas ( Buddhist preachings) of historic value delivered by most Ven. Dambara Amila Thera (Video)

(Lanka-e-News - 24.June.2017, 11.30PM)  A number of rare and most  sublime Damma padhas (Buddhist preaching)   which a Bhikkhu who had not attained the state of Rahat could deliver was preached  by most Ven. Dambara Amila Thera at  the State Information department on the 21 st evening. 

These preachings are  most paramount because  a great part of those few banapadhas  had reference  not  to laymen but rather to Mahanayake of the  Asgiriya chapter and its  clergy council.

While delivering his  sublime Buddha’s words laden with wisdom of true  Buddhism, most Ven. Dambara Amila Thera explained and enlightened  that   the announcement made by Mahanayake of  Asgiriya chapter and its clergy council on behalf of a confirmed  idiot and scoundrel Gnanassara wearing  robes who drove vehicles sans driving license ; ran over a three wheeler when driving a lorry in the dead of night after consuming kasippu , and was therefore punished by court after admitting his guilt  ; and who is setting  the country on fire  for cash rewards, is  most deplorable and deserves absolute denunciation .

This robed Gnanassara on whose behalf the Asgiriya Mahanayake made the announcement is nothing but a debauched moron , marauder and a despicable masquerader in robes  disgracing  his own religion .

It is the view of Lanka e News, those few historic words in the preachings (banapadhas)  of  Ven . Dambara Amila Thera’s were not only most sublime but  most pertinent in the present context when the pristine purity of  Buddhism is being distorted  by so called religious dignitaries based on  their contorted mentality   and warped thinking .

Most Ven. Dambara Amila Thera’s preachings are  historic specially because , never in the history of Sri Lanka , anybody had criticized the bourgeois Mahanayakes and their wrongs in public , despite the fact  Lord  Buddha who renounced all his worldy possessions in search of enlightenment clearly preached  to speak the truth   without fear or favor. 

For just the few banapadhas  he preached to the media  personnel alone , Ven. Dambara Amila Thera deserves to be worshipped not only kneeling down but even falling at his feet …. that is, he said , in order to douse the evil flames of racism and religious hatred ,  writing or telling a lie  is not a sin. 

We are very unfortunate that we do not have the text of the full speech of most Ven. Dambara Amila Thera . However a video footage of it compiled by journalists of ‘Lanka Daily’ is hereunder. Though these Dhamma padhas  were full of rarest pearls of superlative quality and most sublime , it is a matter for deep regret those nitwits and nincompoops in the State information department where those Dhamma padhas   were delivered could not appreciate the value . It was like casting pearls before Swines. Those most valuable  sermons were not even made into a news publication  . In the circumstances , we urge you to watch the video hereunder 

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by     (2017-06-25 01:44:40)

MP Tax-Free Permit Scam: Activist Demands Unqualified Apology From CIABOC Or Face Contempt Charge

JUNE 26, 2017

Public Interest Rights Activist, Nagananda Kodituwakku demands the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) to tender an unqualified apology to the Chief Justice for deceiving the Supreme Court by making a manifestly falsified submission to the Court that the CIABO has already commenced a credible investigation into the activist’s complaint made in August 2016 on MP permit abuse.When the matter was taken up for support on 15th June 2017, activist Kodituwakku asserted that the undertaking given to Court by the CIBOC was a diabolical lie uttered to deceive the Supreme Court and the people and he made a serious accusation against the CIABOC that it simply cannot carryout its functions as required by law in cases where the Executive President, the Cabinet of Ministers and the MPs are involved.   

In the written notice served on CIABOC dated 21st June 2017, after the Supreme Court declined to issue notice the activists challenges that the undertaking given to Court was simply a ploy to suppress the day light robbery of public funds committed by the corrupt MPs and the Cabinet of Ministers who had sold their tax-free car permits.

In his submission made to the Court on 15th June 2017, he drew the attention of the Court to the letter he was served with by the former Director General, Dilrukshi Dias Wickramasinghe wherein she informed him that ‘although the government had incurred a loss due to the abuse of MP tax-free car permits it had been incurred due to the implementation of the government policy and therefore the CIABOC would not inquire into the abuse of tax-free permits issued to MPs’. The Court also heard that the former Director General, Dilrukshi Dias Wickramasinghe, deliberately declined to inquire in to activist’s complaint compelling him to charge her for ‘Corruption’ and when the government was determined remove her from the office for different reasons, the corruption charges leveled against her by the activist Nagananda was used to justify her removal from office of the Director General of CIABOC.

In the activist’s hard-hitting letter addressed to the Chairman of the CIABOC the activist asserts that the undertaking given to Court by the CIABOC that it has already commenced a credible investigation was manifestly false and that the former Director General Dilrukshi Dias Wickramasinghe had earlier at a press briefing had threatened and intimidated the activist with a criminal prosecution under Section 21 of the CIABOC Act for making a false allegation.

In the submission made to the Court the activist submitted to the Court that since the CIABOC fatally failed to act as required by law on activist’s complaint, private companies and individuals who are prohibited to enjoy this tax exemption had imported over 100 Land Cruiser Jeeps on these MP tax-free permits. The Supreme Court also heard with attention drawn to the relevant documentary evidence that the total failure of the CIABOC has opened the floodgates for corrupt MPs and Ministers to abuse the MP tax-free permits with no respect or regard to the Rule of Law. And even the Executive President M Sirisena, has taken the advantage and imported a Land Cruiser Jeep on 14th Oct 2016 claiming himself to be an MP for Polonnaruwa District and the former President, Mahinda Rajapaksa, (now a Kurunegala District MP) too has imported a similar vehicle on 19th Sep 2016 on a MP tax-free permit, defrauding the payment of fiscal levies of Rs  33,457,500.00 for each vehicle.   

In this backdrop the activist Nagananda claims that this totally deplorable conduct on the part of the CIABOC has patently proved that although on paper it is an independent body created by law to combat bribery and Corruption, in practice it is completely an impotent statutory body that does not enjoy any independence at all, particularly when it comes to matters involving corrupt MPs, Ministers and the Executive President.

Setting out examples of the dismal failure of the CIABOC and reason for not to accept its undertaking to conduct a credible investigation, the activist submitted to the Court that when President Mahinda Rajapaksa was determined to remove the Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayake, he used the CIABOC as a tool. On 26th of July 2013, the then Director General of CIABOC Luckshme Jayawickrama, brought three charges before the Chief Magistrate Court, Colombo (copies enclosed) against the Chief Justice on which the Chief Justice was unjustly impeached. Once the duty entrusted on the CIABOC was duly accomplished, the Attorney General later made an application to the Court on behalf of the CIABOC, seeking permission to withdraw all the charges. And the Court exonerated the Chief Justice from the unsubstantiated criminal charges leveled against her.

In the demand sent to the CIABOC the activist also claims that CIABOC was created by law for a purpose; that is to combat bribery and corruption against any person who violates the law, guaranteeing the Commissioners total independence to perform the public office for ‘public good’ with due respect and regard to the public trust doctrine without violating the integrity and the public confidence placed in it. However, the conduct of the extant Commissioners and the Director General of the CIABOC has proved, beyond any doubt, about their inability to deal with high profile major fraud inquiries. And that the CIABOC has fatally failed to realize the expectations of people and blatantly violated the people’s trust placed in the CIABOC.

The activist Nagananda Kodituwakku charged that the CIABOC had intentionally deceived the Supreme Court with manifestly falsified submission that it had already initiated a credible investigation into activist’s complaint and cautions the CIABOC that unless an unqualified apology is tendered to the Chief Justice for deceiving the Supreme Court, it will be charged for contempt, seeking for an order against all three Commissioners and the Director General for punishment in terms Article 105 (3) of the Constitution.

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Plans to reduce indirect taxes to 60 percent:Mangala

Finance and Mass Media Minister Mangala Samaraweera paying a courtesy call on Malwatte Mahanayake Thera Most. Ven. Thibbotuwawe Sri Siddhartha Sumangala Thera on Saturday. Picture by Gamini Ranasinghe

Asela KURULUWANSA-Monday, June 26, 2017

Indirect taxes account for 80 percent of the government’s tax income. This will be brought down to 60 percent within the next two years bringing tangible relief and benefits to the innocent and poor people, Finance and Mass Media Minister Mangala Samaraweera said.

He said when indirect taxes levied on people’s daily essentials are reduced, the prices of goods will come down sharply.

“The increased income earned from direct taxes will be invested in mass scale projects to promote economic development,” Minister Samaraweera said.

The Minister expressed these sentiments when he called on the Malwatte Prelate at his temple in Kandy and received his blessings on June 24.

He was accompanied by development strategies and International Trade Minister Malik Samarawickreme and Finance State Minister Eran Wickremaratne.

Minister Samaraweera said there was a large number of tax evaders among those liable to pay income tax. Even high income bracket doctors, lawyers and architects were among the tax evaders.

He said the country was in deep crisis when the government took over power after the last Presidential Election. On the other hand, there was a severe setback to democracy. Sri Lanka was isolated by the international community because democracy was in danger and media freedom was crushed with killing, abduction and torture of journalists.

“As a result of the action taken by the President and the Prime Minister to form a new consensus government by bringing together the two main parties, the future course of the country had been rebuilt on three strong edifies of democracy, harmony and development,” Minister Samaraweera said.

He said no country could march forward in isolation. The government had succeeded in winning over the maximum international confidence for the country within a short period. One of the striking benefits was the restoration of the GSP Plus facility and the removal of the prohibition on fish exports imposed by Europe.

“The good governance government had been able to re-establish and strengthen diplomatic ties with several counties and enter into free trade agreements with China, Singapore and India.

There was high international recognition of the programme of work enunciated by the President and the Prime Minister and countries such as Russia and Australia had established enhanced high level diplomatic relations with Sri Lanka,” the Minister said.

He said Minister Ravi Karunanayake had rendered a great service by accepting the Finance Ministry portfolio at a most difficult time in the country’s history.

“The country was engulfed in a severe debt trap when the government assumed power and the debt burden was being systematically decreased today,” the Minister said. He said 17 essential items were brought under price control as soon as the government assumed power. He said attracting foreign investment was compulsory in order to develop the country.

Minister Samaraweera who also called on Ven. Dimbulkumbure Wimaladhamma and Ven. Niyangoda Sri Vijithasiri Anunayake Theras of the Malwatte Chapter, said the government was keeping a close tab on forces trying to take the country backwards.

The SAITM Private University was established during the time of former President Mahinda Rajapakse.

SAITM had a peaceful existence for five years but all opposition and demonstrations against it started after this government came to power. He said the GMOA staged a strike even without concern for the patients suffering from dengue.

Minister Samaraweera also called on the Asgiriya Prelate at his temple and resumed his blessings.

Minister Mangala Samaraweera, Malik Samarawickreme and State Minister Eran Wickremaratne also called on the Malwatte Prelate and received his blessings in June 24.

Sri Lanka to close down some diplomatic missions

2017-06-26

Several Sri Lankan Missions abroad including some of those in Europe would be closed down soon, Minister of Foreign Affairs Ravi Karunanayake said yesterday.

He was explaining the Government's plans to make changes in its diplomatic mechanism.

He said it would be done after assessing the performance and looking at the rationale behind keeping these missions.

Minister Karunanayake, who came up with this information at a media briefing yesterday morning said some Sri Lankan diplomatic missions in Europe would have to be closed down in the future.

“We will have to close down some missions as those have found to be of no use lately," the Minister said

He said performance of all diplomatic mission heads would be assessed before making a final decision.

“The Government has decided to go for commercial based diplomacy and link to the world through establishing commercial based diplomatic ties with various countries across the globe," he added

Further the minister said

“Heads of all Sri Lankan diplomatic missions have been called for a meeting with the President and the Prime Minister on September 4 to brief them about the new policy,” he said.

He said three diplomatic heads had been already recalled.

However, the Minister refrained from divulging as who these mission heads were.

“We are not in a position to reveal the names of these diplomatic heads yet,” he added.

Meanwhile, Mr. Karunanayake said only one person with vested interests was shouting against the Government’s move to put the National Lotteries Board under his purview.

“They may be shouting as I managed to turn the National Lotteries Board into a profit making venture, which was hit by financial losses,” he said.

“There have been instances where the Mahapola was under the Ministry of National Security during the time of late Lalith Athulathmudali and the National Lotteries Board was under the purview of Ministry of Science and Technology in the past.

“However a great din is made when the National Lotteries Board was placed under the purview of my Ministry,” he added.(Yohan Perera)

Records for Rs. 1043 billion disappear from CB

June 24, 2017

It was revealed in Parliament yesterday (23rd) that transactions made with treasury bonds issued in January, 2015, transactions to the value of Rs. 1043 billion have not been recorded in the Treasury.

It was revealed every transaction made by the government through the Treasury is recorded and transactions made by other institutions are recorded in their balance sheets.

The latest report of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), released yesterday in Parliament reveals that states and semi- government created local or foreign bonds exceeding their limits and according to information in 2015 the amount is Rs. 1043 billion.

Despite such transactions are not recorded by the Treasury, the Treasury will have to pay the monies on behalf of the government which would cause a contingent liability the Chief Accounting Officer of the Central Bank has told the PAC.

The report ws presented to parliament by the Chairman of PAC Lasantha alagiyawanna.

Brighter Or Darker Skies Over SriLankan Airlines?

By Rajeewa Jayaweera –JUNE 25, 2017

Rajeewa Jayaweera

A media release in October 2016 by SriLankan Airlines stated among other things, “The airline’s Group Loss stood at LKR 9.03 billion, which represents a 45% improvement for the 2015/16 financial year compared to the previous year” (2014/15). The annual report confirmed a Group Loss of LKR 9.5 billion, excluding a penalty charge of LKR 2.5 billion, paid for cancellation of one A350-800.

The media release by the national carrier published by The Island last week titled “Brighter skies over SriLankan Airlines financial position” states, “Contrary to inaccurate reports in the press, the management of SriLankan Airlines would like to point out that since the Unity government was formed, the airline’s losses have been dramatically reduced.” It further reported a ‘draft’ (unaudited) loss of LKR 13.4 billion during 2016/17 excluding LKR 14.3 billion, paid for cancellation of several A350-800 aircraft.

To describe a LKR 3.9 billion or 41% increase in year on year Group Losses, despite the discontinuation of traditionally loss-making routes of Frankfurt, Paris and Rome as a “dramatic reduction of losses since the unity government was formed” is to be mendacious.    

The present management regularly camouflage its abysmal performance with announcements of ‘Company Losses’ and ‘Group Losses’. This directorate or any other directorate cannot be expected to make good, nearly four decades of monumental losses and mismanagement.

However, the present directorate and management can and should be held accountable for their inability to achieve an Operating Profit (surplus) in its core business operations. An Operating Profit / Loss has no relevance to servicing previous loans and payments for future aircraft deliveries / cancellations. Unlike Sri Lankan Rupee figures, US Dollar figures has no bearing on the depreciation of Sri Lankan Rupee.

Core business activity of an airlines consist of ‘Passenger & Cargo Transportation, carriage of Mail & Excess Baggage, ad hoc flights (charters) and Frequent Flyer net accruals. Revenue derived thereof is referred as Traffic Revenue. Operating Profit (surplus) is the positive variance between Traffic Revenue and Operating Expenditure, expenditure related to generating Traffic Revenue. Ancillary activities such as Ground Handling, Engineering Services, Duty Free Sales, Catering, Training Centre etc.  do not belong to core business activity.   

2016/17 Performance 

Traffic Revenue has reportedly dropped by 6.1% to USD 790 million in 2016/17 from USD 842 million in 2015/16. Passenger Revenue is down by 6.5% to USD 685 million from USD 725 million and Cargo Revenue down by 7% to USD 80 from USD 87 million.

The Operating Deficit in 2016/17 amounts to USD 110 million compared to USD 87 million in 2015/16, an increase by 26%.

Key contributory factors have been a 2% reduction in revenue passenger kilometers (RPKs) in 2016/17 from previous year (RPK is calculated by multiplying the number of revenue-paying passengers on board a flight by the distance traveled), a 3% reduction in Passenger Yields and 11% reduction in Cargo Yields from previous year. It has negated a 3% increase in number of passengers carried from previous year.    

One of the reasons attributed to the “weakening of the balance sheet” in the media release was the non- recovery of “drop in ticket prices” as a result of “fuel price reduction in 2015”. Nevertheless, a reliable source stated “average fuel price paid by the airline in US cents per gallon in 2016/17 was 3% less than average price paid in 2015/16”.

Drop in ticket prices need be addressed with innovative and dynamic sales, pricing and marketing strategies, by the commercial division, besides stringent controlling of costs by all concerned, top down.

Drop in ticket prices is a universal phenomenon and not limited to the Sri Lankan market and SriLankan Airlines. Qatar Airways CEO announced last week, a 20% growth in profits of USD 541 million and a 22% growth in passengers carried on year on year basis.

Identity Crisis

The national carrier is undergoing an identity crisis. It is unable to decide if it is a long haul / legacy carrier, regional carrier, intra-regional carrier or a budget carrier. According to the carrier’s website, it currently operates 23 aircraft comprising of 13 wide-bodied and 11 narrow-bodied aircraft to 41 destinations including Melbourne due to commence on October 29. Most carriers, after careful study of new routes demand in existing routes, acquire aircraft for route expansion. SriLankan Airlines introduces new destinations and increase frequency to existing destinations due to an excess of aircraft. 

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