News
Foreign diplomat in Colombo suspects surveillance on him
A foreign diplomat in Colombo has asked if he is under surveillance after details of some visitors to his official residence was exposed in the media.
IRD officials summoned before COPA
The Inland Revenue Department has been summoned again before the Committee on Public Accounts (COPA) on March 10 to review the progress of tax and penalty collection.
The Committee on Public Accounts came to a decision during its meeting held on 6th January to publicize all the institutions which have failed to pay the due levy by submitting a list of such institutions to the Media and Chairman of the Committee Prof.
Tissa Vitharana further instructed the Inland Revenue Department to submit to the Committee a list of institutions who have failed to pay the due levy within two months.
The members of the COPA will inquire the measures taken by the Inland Revenue Department to collect the tax due.
In addition, the Sri Lanka Customs has been summoned before the COPA on March 09 and ‘’Propensity to tend Education under the Arts Stream and the Unemployment of Arts Graduates’’ will be discussed on March 23.
Also, the Inland Revenue Department is scheduled to be reconvened on March 24 and the Wildlife Conservation Department has been summoned before the COPA Committee on March 25.
Ceramic ware prices go up amidst impending tax hike
Sri Lanka's construction industry along with the millions of people who are building or repairing their houses have been pushed into dire straits due to skyrocketing prices of tile and sanitary ware products following the government’s recent decision on tax revision.
Importers and retail dealers of ceramic ware complained that the government-imposed duty and new CESS on the import of ceramics and tile will cause local prices to rise in unbearable promotions.
Traders said prices have shot up because of the shortage. A 2×2-foot tile that was selling at Rs. 650 now costs Rs. 1,750.
While an imported commode was selling at Rs. 22,000 and with no stocks available in the market currently, a similar commode supposed to be produced locally is now selling at Rs. 43,000, they noted. The prices of tile and ceramic ware sky rocketed by 100 -150 per cent at present from earlier prices and there is a severe shortage of products in the local market.
The country will be losing Rs. 15 billion as taxes per annum, several local importers said, adding that with the present depreciation of the rupee, they are faced with bigger issues as they buy in dollars and sell in Sri Lanka rupees.
At present, this industry provides direct and indirect employment to around 50,000 individuals island-wide with over 2,000 dealers countrywide.
All of them are being severely affected as the import sector has already collapsed inflicting a spillover effect on auxiliary related industries such as warehousing and logistics, clearing and forwarding, banking and finance, construction and commercial real estates.
However, action has now been taken to remove restrictions allowing the importation of these ceramic ware including tiles subject to special CESS with amicable agreement of importers and local manufacturers, finance ministry sources said.
This agreement was reached at a meeting this week chaired by Treasury Secretary S.R. Attygalle with representatives of Tile and Sanitaryware Importers Association along with the local manufactures to discuss a way forward to both facilitate a healthy level of imports while protecting local manufacturers, a senior official of the ministry said.
The meeting was successfully concluded with all parties agreeing to revise import duty and impose a new CESS of Rs. 490 per square meter of tiles instead of the currently applicable CESS based on the value of tiles.
Sanitary ware importers have agreed to revise customs duty to 30 percent from 15 percent at present the CESS to a flat rate of Rs. 125 per kilo.
At present, there was no CESS on certain sanitary ware products and others are charged at 15 percent or Rs. 40 per kilo, a senior official said.
Although there was consensus on these new rates, the government has to take a decision on this matter at the highest level before the approval of the Finance Minister, he added.
The need to protect the local manufacturers has been brought to the attention of high authorities as it has already made very high investment for production expansion.
Three local large-scale tile manufacturers and seven bath ware manufacturers dominate Sri Lanka’s tiles and bath ware manufacturing industry - a vital sector in the construction sector, industry sources said.
These manufacturers possessed a current combined annual production capacity of 17 million square meters of tiles and approximately 700,000 bath ware pieces.
They are planning to increase tile production capacities by another 3.5 million square meters this year and will result in a total local production output to 20.5 million square meters by mid 2021.
These large-scale local manufacturers have invested over Rs.35 billion up to now and thy are paying over Rs.5.5billion in taxes per year providing employment to over 7,500 Sri Lankans these sources revealed.
Another gazette reversed : Tile import restrictions to continue
Gotabaya decides not to contest the next presidential election?
A popular pro-government news website has reported that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa will not contest the next presidential election.
According to 'Lanka C News', the President has stated this at a meeting of party leaders held recently.
A parliamentarian who took part in the meeting had told 'Lanka C News' that the President had assured that he was ready to field a candidate who could garner minority votes in the next presidential election.
He had also intimated his desire to contribute to efforts that would help that candidate to get enough votes from the Sinhala vote base.
A senior Minister in the government said that pro-government nationalist forces including Minister Wimal Weerawansa are making a concerted effort to field Gotabaya Rajapaksa for the next presidential election as well.
However, he said that the Rajapaksa family has already decided to field Basil Rajapaksa as the presidential candidate and to nominate Sports Minister Namal Rajapaksa as the Prime Ministerial candidate.
Meanwhile, a Minister with close links to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa said that the President is yet to make a final decision on the next presidential election.
"Let these rumors float around. There's still time left," he added.
"He was brought in as the candidate at the last minute. It will be the same next time as well," he added.
Tourism sector stakeholders to receive priority in Covid inoculation drive
A proposal submitted by Sri Lanka Tourism to provide Covid vaccinations for industry stakeholders, in a bid to fast-track the revival of the tourism sector post-COVID has been approved by the government. Tourism Minister Prasanna Ranatunga has approved, together with the Health Ministry, a special vinculation programme in the coming weeks.
“The revival of the tourism sector is our primary focus. In doing so, we proposed the special vaccination program and, with the support of the Tourism and Health Ministries, we will implement the project in the immediate future. We aim to safeguard the stakeholders of the industry and work towards a fairly normal setup,” Fernando said.
It was noted that tourism industry stakeholders have begun to send information to get registered for the programme.
Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) data shows that a total of 12,503 employees of ‘Safe and Secure’ certified hotels have registered, along with 2,737 tour guides and 1,816 tourist drivers.
These are all SLTDA registered entities and individuals who play a significant role in the tourism industry despite the pandemic situation.
In addition, a total of 658 employees from the four tourism institutions and Tourism Ministry have been added to the programme.
“Attaining normalcy in operations like pre-pandemic times and uplifting the industry during these periods will have a positive impact on the country’s economy.
Thus far, the safety of our people is a core mandate; hence we look forward to working together with the respective ministries and the stakeholders to successfully conduct this action,” SLTDA Director General Dhammika Wijayasinghe said.
The industry stakeholders have also welcomed the move and have received an overwhelming response within a short span of time.
With a total of 17,714 individuals having expressed interest to register for the Covishield vaccine, the SLTDA believes the revival of tourism in Sri Lanka is not too far.
A total of 5,048 tourist arrivals were recorded this year by February, out of which only nine were confirmed COVID-19 infected.
Community spread was mitigated with the safety protocols put in place. SLTDA believes the vaccination initiative will not only safeguard tourism industry stakeholders, but make Sri Lanka one step closer to being the safest tourist destination in the world.
Brandix CEO resigns from Sri Lankan Board
The CEO of the Brandix Group, Ashroff Omar, has resigned from the Board of Directors ofSri Lankan Airlines citing personal reasons.Ashraffhad tendered his resignation on March 01, a senior official of Sri LankanAirlines confirmed, adding that he is fully occupied with his personnel matters.
The FinanceMinistry appointed top professionals and business leaders including AshroffOmar to the new Director Board of Sri LankanAirlines in January last year.
He is a highly respected industrialist and renowned as a globalbusinessman with a penchant for out-of-the-box thinking.
Ashroff Omar serves as a Director of Phoenix Ventures and manygroup subsidiaries.
He was a founder member of the Joint Apparel Association Forum (JAAF).He is also the Honorary Consul General of Finland and sits on the board of theUS-Sri Lanka Fulbright Commission.
He is alsoa core member and Southeast Asia node for the Corporate Development andPrincipal Investors and Private Equity practices.
Apart fromChairman Ashok Pathirage (Chairman - Softlogic Holdings PLC) who was appointedearlier on, the other members of the Sri Lankan Airlines Board of Directors areDilmah Group Director Malik Fernando, top lawyers Manohara De Silva PC andSamantha Ratwatte PC and the Asia-Pacific node for Boston Consulting Group’sshipping, transportation, and logistics sectors Sanjaya Mohottala, who is alsothe Chairman of the Board of Investment (BOI) of Sri Lanka.
Government mulls in heeding LP Gas company demand of price hikes
The government is considering the request made by LP gas companies to increase the price of LP gas cylinder with immediate effect owing to rapidly increasing world gas prices.
Trade Minister Bandula Gunawardena said that the proposal to increase the LP gas price will be presented to the next cabinet meeting for its approval.
He noted that the LP gas price has not been increased during last five years despite rupee depreciation and increasing international LP gas prices.
The two LP gas providers has made a request to increase the price to the Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA) and they are waiting for an immediate response, officials of these companies said.
In the wake of rising world market prices and rupee depreciation, LP Gas companies have made a request from the government authorities to increase the price of a 12.5kg domestic LP gas cylinder by at least Rs. 407 with immediate effect, official sources said.
In addition, prices of the 5kg domestic LP gas cylinder will also be increased proportionately.
Quoting Saudi ARAMCO price index, LP gas companies noted that the world market price of Propane has increased to USD 605 per metric ton.
Accordingly, the current price of the 12.5kg domestic cylinder, which was at Rs. 1,493, will go up to Rs. 1,900. However, the prices will vary according to different districts.
Price applications submitted by gas companies will have to be passed by the Cabinet of Ministers.
"The determination of the price was assigned to the Cost of Living Committee. Considering the rising world market prices and it should be approved and announced by the Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA) in consultations with relevant gas supplier companies," a CAA official said. Noting that the world market prices are fluctuating factors which cannot be controlled by countries, but senior official of the CAA predicted this upward trend in cost would continue till early next year.
“The regulation of gas business is under the CAA. The CAA signed an agreement on the prices in 2007 with then Shell and continued with Litro after the takeover. The same year, a pricing formula was introduced. Since then, there had been many price changes up to now," the official added.
CEB trying to purchase emergency power?
According to media reports, the Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL) is going to approve emergency power purchases. It is unfortunate that the Ceylon Electricity Board is still continuing with the ad hoc emergency power purchases although the country has not experienced any emergency situation recently.
It is understood that the PUCSL is going to approve the purchase of emergency power from an entity known as Vee Power at a tariff of Rs 28 — 30 per kWh whereas three established long term power plants, whose tariffs are in the region of Rs 23- 24 per kWh, are going to have their Power Purchase Agreements expiring soon.
The emergency power producers are going to use auto diesel as fuel which is the most expensive form of fuel used for power generation. However, three IPPs, whose operations will come to end soon, are using Heavy Furnace Oil as fuel.
If the CEB allows the three IPPs to stop generation, even the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC), which sells Heavy Furnace Oil to these power plants at Rs 70 per liter will stand to lose some revenue, informed sources pointed out.
The CPC is selling Heavy Furnace Oil to IPPs at a profit and therefore, the CPC will be compelled to export High Furnace Oil at a much lesser price than the price CPC is charging now from these IPPs.
The CEB is aware of the fact that no additional generating capacities have been added to the power generating system. The CEB is also aware that three IPPs are going to have their PPAs expire soon.
A prudent practice could have been for the CEB to negotiate with the three IPPs to extend the tenure of the existing PPAs rather than resorting to purchase of "emergency power" at a higher tariff.
Sources at the CEB said that the deterioration of the CEB's financial position started with the purchase of these so called "emergency power" two decades ago and it is a shame that the CEB is still continuing with this practice.
Meanwhile, PUCSL Chairman Janaka Ratnayake told Daily FT that the public should not be concerned about any moves to institute power cuts by the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB), even though the regulator was moving ahead with plans to approve emergency power purchases.
Police obstruct protest in Jaffna
A tense situation erupted on Thursday (04) when the Tamil National People's Front (TNPF) staged a protest in Jaffna against the government's decision to transfer the Land Reforms Commission (LRC) office in Jaffna to Anuradhapura. According to media reports from the North, the leader of the TNPF, Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam had been harassed and severely reprimanded by Police personnel when he had attempted to enter the District Secretariat Office.
The LRC office based at the Jaffna District Secretariat is responsible for the implementation of land reform across the entire Northern Province including Jaffna, Kilinochchi, Vavuniya, Mullaitivu and Mannar.
The group of protestors had eventually handed over a letter to the Government Agent of Jaffna after failing to enter the Secretariat.
TNPF General Secretary S. Kajendran MP had raised the issue in Parliament in February noting that transfering the Northern and Trincomalee LRC Offices to Anuradhapura has created fear among Tamils, amidst ongoing land grabs. "This forces Tamils and Muslims to travel to Anuradhapura for land issues. We demand that this is halted immediately," he said.
Covid-19 Prevention Ministry Secretary removed for giving Sanath Jayasuriya the vaccine
State Ministry of Primary Health Services, Pandemics and COVID-19 Prevention Secretary, Dr. Amal Harsha de Silva has been removed from the post with immediate effect. He has been appointed as Secretary to the State Ministry of Backward Rural Areas Development and Promotion of Domestic Animal Husbandry. At a press briefing at the Abayaramaya Temple, Ven. Murutthettuwe Ananda Thero noted that Dr. Amal de Silva removed from the post of Secretary for giving the Covid-19 vaccine to former Sri Lanka skipper Sanath Jayasuriya who was not included in the vaccine priority list with regard to the national COVID-19 inoculation drive in the country.
He further observed that the Ministry of Health is in utter chaos. When journalists inquired how a former national cricket team captain was able to receive the vaccine during a Cabinet press briefing recently, Co-Cabinet Spokesman Dr. Ramesh Pathirana said that celebrities are getting the COVID-19 vaccine to allay any doubts or fears the people may have about the vaccine. Meanwhile, it is reported that Sunethra Gunawardena has been appointed as Secretary to the State Ministry of Primary Health Care, Pandemics and COVID-19 Prevention.
Furthermore, it is reported that Dr. Sudarshani Fernandopulle, State Minister of Primary Health Care, Pandemics and COVID-19 Prevention is deeply concerned about the removal of Dr. Amal Harsha de Silva, who is considered to be one of the most senior administrative officials in the Ministry of Health, internal government sources said.
20A rejected by 80% of the population - Karu Jayasuriya
Highways Minister launches road development projects in Anuradhapura District
Development of several roads in the Anuradhapura District under the North Central Province Joint Road Investment Programme commenced today (04) under the patronage of the Minister of Highways and Chief Government Whip Johnston Fernando and the State Minister of Rural Roads and Other Infrastructure Nimal Lansa.
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