News

The questionable bond deal of the Central Bank in 2015 has caused losses to the country according to the report on the scam handed over to the President Maithripala Sirisena yesterday.

Reliable insider sources have revealed that the report has also named several individuals as responsible for the incurred loss.

The final report of the Presidential Commission of Inquiry into the Bond Issuance of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka was handed over to President Maithripala Sirisena yesterday by members of the commission, its secretary S. Udugamasooriya, Supreme Court Judge P.S Jayawardene, Retired Deputy Auditor General V. Kandasamy.

Al three members of the commission were said to be in attendance at the handover. According to sources, the President is now expected to hand over the report to the Attorney General’s Department.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe, Former Minister of Finance Ravi Karunanayake, Minister Malik Samarawickrama, Minister Kabir Hashim, Former Central Bank Governor Arjuna Mahendran, Owner of Perpetual Treasuries his Son-in-law Arjun Aloysius, Perpetual Treasuries CEO Kasun Palisena and many government officials appeared before the commission.

The Commission was appointed by President Maithripala Sirisena to begin an inquiry into the issuance of Bonds that took place during the time period February 1, 2015, to March 31, 2016.

The wife of the Eastern province governor Rohitha Bogollagama, Deepthi Bogollagama is said to have threatened a group of Tamil devotees while visiting a religious site in Trincomalee. The incident had occurred during a visit to the site which is currently under dispute regarding its heritage. Her disruptive behaviour before the Police and government officers is said to have angered the villagers of Sampur.

Deepthi Bogollagama was seen on tape walking over ‘Kolam’ drawn at the religious site while wearing shoes and threatening the people present. She was recorded in the act at the Skanda Kumara Kovil on the Maddalama hill in Sudaikudah village belonging to the Muttur District Secretariat.

As the women called out to their deities Mrs Bologgalagama is seen threatening the group saying “You will all be dealt with”.

She was later led away by the Police with the villagers calling out for her to be removed from the site.

The governor was at the time visiting the site to inquire into the claims by two Buddhist monks that the religious site has Buddhist archaeological value who had then gone on to coerce the Kovil administration to stop digging a well in the premises.

According to the Kovil’s Hindu priest Rasaiah Padmanathan, the site has long been a religious site where Gods Skanda, Kaali and Bahirawa were worshipped by devotees.

However, after claims were made the site is a Buddhist archaeological site the Governor has ordered the Trincomalee GA to look into the registration of the Kovil and to mark the boundaries of the area.

He has also ordered to stop the digging of the well in the Kovil premises while promising to provide water through a browser.

The Kovil has now been provided with special protection the Police said.

Source : radiogagana

The UNP election campaign office located on the University Road in Boralesgamuwa was attacked on last night. The office had been declared open just earlier yesterday. The decorations and several lighting equipment had been damaged in the attack.

 The attacked campaign office was established by UNP listed candidate Bandula Chandrasekara who had handed over his nomination for the Boralesgamuwa Urban Council. He is a Central Committee Member of the Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU), part of the United National Front (UNF). The office had been located at his resident. Sources say Police are carrying out further investigations into the incident.

Bandula Chandrasekara is well known political and social activist. He played a major role in Presidential Election in 2015 for the victory of the common candidate in order to form the Alliance government.

The United States’ Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) program for Sri Lanka and other countries expires on December 31, 2017. The United States Congress has not re-authorized GSP before adjourning for the year.

The immediate effect of GSP expiration is GSP eligible imports to the United States from Sri Lanka and other GSP beneficiary countries and territories will be subject to non-preferential duties beginning January 1, 2018, the US Embassy in Colombo said today.

The United States says it is proud to serve as the top export market for Sri Lanka. According to the Global Trade Atlas, in 2016, the United States imported $2.8 billion of Sri Lankan goods.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s web site has a page dedicated to GSP program information with detailed information on importation procedures during a program lapse.

Source : Colombo Gazette

Sources within the Financial Crimes Investigations Department (FCID), report that 97 files sent to the Attorney General’s (AG) Department for advice on further action had not returned with a reply. As a result of many officers complain that they are wasting their time with nothing to do.

Officers remarked that if a response from the AG’s Department had been given, they would have been able to take all necessary legal action against those responsible.

The FCID has received over 500 complaints regarding large-scale fraud and of that number, 300 are being investigated into.

Among these cases, the cases regarding the assets of certain individuals have been handed over to the Commission to Investigate Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) or other relevant agencies.

CIABOC, however, has no authority to investigate cases regarding money laundering and thus these cases were sent to the FCID. These are among the files completed and handed over to the AG’s Department, it was learnt. The officers hoped that they would receive a reply regarding these files by at least early next year.

Source : Daily News

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The signing of a collective agreement between the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna and the other parties in the JO have been postponed due to a internal conflict between Basil Rajapaksa and other leaders of the JO according to state intelligence services who have reported the current situation to the President.

According to the report while the agreement was to be signed at the BMICH however it was later planned to be held at the Kingsbury Hotel owned by businessman Dhammika Perera.

During a discussion regarding this agreement leader of the National Freedom Front Wimal Weerawansa is said to have exchanged heated words with MP Mahinda Rajapaksa.

Weerawansa is then said to have left during the argument and attempts to contact him by Rajapaksa loyalists is said to have failed.

While Basil Rajapaksa had then left to meet Dinesh Gunawardena in Avissawella however no favourable solution had been arrived at. As a result the agreement is said to now be indefinitely postponed.

However when asked secretary to the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna Sagara Kariyawasam said the agreement will be signed in due time.

The final report of the Presidential Commission of Inquiry into the Bond Issuance of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka was handed over to President Maithripala Sirisena today, informed sources said.

Al three members of the commission were said to be in attendance at the handover. According to sources, the President is now expected to hand over the report to the Attorney General’s Department.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe, Former Minister of Finance Ravi Karunanayake, Minister Malik Samarawickrama, Minister Kabir Hashim, Former Central Bank Governor Arjuna Mahendran, Owner of Perpetual Treasuries his Son-in-law Arjun Aloysius, Perpetual Treasuries CEO Kasun Palihawadana and many government officials appeared before the commission.

The Commission was appointed by President Maithripala Sirisena to begin an inquiry into the issuance of Bonds that took place during the time period February 1, 2015, to March 31, 2016.

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Sri Lanka Army troops in the Kilinochchi carried out a programme to distribute plant saplings among deserving families in the region. According to Army media, troops of the Security Force Headquarters - Kilinochchi (SFHQ-KLN) had initiated this programme with a view to uplift the economic standards of the people in the region.

About 2000 plants of economic value such as Jackfruit, Breadfruit, Coconut and Mango were distributed among selected families in the Ampakamam area in Kilinochchi region, during a simple ceremony held last week. 50 families were presented with plant saplings during the ceremony.

In September, Army troops also distributed 2000 plant saplings among the civilians in Kilinochchi. This was carried out under an ambitious campaign to plant 135,000 plants in the region in keeping with the 'Wana Ropa' National Tree Planting Programme.

The time period for the public to hand over defaced currency has been extended for a further six months Central Bank sources say. The Central Bank is said to have taken this decision on direction of Premier Ranil Wickramasinghe

The Prime Minister has directed the officials to extend the deadline due to difficulties faced by the public as the compulsory deadline to hand over the defaced notes were set for December 31, 2017. However public had voiced many concerns and issues over the move which has prompted in extending the deadline.

Therefore a government spokesperson said the public now need not be alarmed as an extension has been given to hand over all currency notes which had been damaged or defaced.

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Following concerns raised by media activists in the North, a special committee is to be set up to investigate disappearances and deaths of journalists in the region. The Secretary to the President is to head the committee which will also probe into various issues faced by regional journalists and make recommendations to rectify them.

The committee will also include the Director General of the Government Information Department, Additional Secretary to the Ministry of Media, and the Commissioner General of the Department of Labour.

The committee is expected to report back to the President in three months time.

Expressing his concerns at the meeting Northern journalist Kandasamy Selvakumar said no action had been taken previously despite concerns being raised regarding these journalists.

According to them legal action had only been taken regarding two out of 44 journalists named as dead or missing in a report handed over to the government two years ago.

The Railway Control Room said additional train services will function until January 7 to accommodate crowds returning from holiday destinations.

Railway Additional General Manager Wijaya Samarasinghe said that an additional train service to Badulla and Bandarawela would also function until January 7.

Source: Daily News

A Code of ethics for web-based media and journalists will be launched at the Professional Web Journalist Association (WJA) annual general meeting tomorrow. (29)

The event which is to be held at the JAIC Hilton will be held under the auspices of President Maithripala Sirisena. Minister of Finance and Media, Mangala Samaraweera, and other government dignitaries will be in attendance as well.

According to the WJA, the new code of ethics will ensure responsible journalism from web journalists and media organisations.