<ul><li>Prog. being planned following Basil-Ranil meeting</li></ul>The ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) stated that a programme is currently being planned to involve former Local Government (LG) representatives for ongoing development projects.Speaking to The Daily Morning, the SLPP’s General Secretary and Government Parliamentarian, Sagara Kariyawasam said that this issue was also discussed in the talks held between the SLPP's founder and former Minister Basil Rajapaksa and President Ranil Wickremesinghe.&nbsp;“There is no preparation to hold the LG elections yet. The LG representatives have been sidelined with no responsibility. Therefore, Rajapaksa requested the President to involve them in the development projects. The President had expressed his agreement for that, and a programme is being prepared.”The LG elections, which were scheduled to be held in March 2023, and then in April 2023, were indefinitely postponed due to the Election Commission (EC) not receiving the necessary financial allocations from the Ministry of Finance. President and Finance Minister Wickremesinghe and many other Government representatives said that it was difficult to allocate the necessary money to hold the LG elections in the current economic climate.Meanwhile, in a letter addressed to the EC, the local elections monitoring body, the People's Action for Free and Fair Elections recently pointed out that even though the LG elections were postponed indefinitely, the elections were not cancelled, meaning that the pre-election laws are still in effect. It also highlighted that political parties and candidates could gain unfair advantage from the planned implementation of the development projects by the political authorities, and hence urged the EC to take appropriate action.&nbsp;

Ex-LG politicos to assist development?  

<ul><li> Responds to Oppo.’s defence of lawyer involved in incident Sandaru Kumarasinghe</li><li> Premadasa calls police action harassment, calls on PM to intervene to avert further action&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</li></ul>Following several politicians including Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa, raising concerns about Sandaru Kumarasinghe – who had allegedly caused a disturbance last week in the visa issuance section at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) at Katunayake after raising question about the processing of visa applications – being summoned by the Police, the Minister of Public Security Tiran Alles said that they would not prolong the issue.Video clips circulated on social media platforms last week showing an incoming passenger at the BIA claiming that ‘Indian’ personnel were handling Sri Lanka's immigration and emigration-related processes. The Airport Police in Katunayake had then summoned the individual in question, Kumarasinghe, to record a statement on Monday (6).Speaking in the Parliament yesterday (7), Premadasa said that Kumarasinghe had voiced his opinion about an issue at the BIA, gaining attention on social media platforms. Emphasising that Sri Lanka is not a State governed by the Police, he expressed his opposition to Kumarasinghe being summoned by the Police. “Any harassment or further action against him is unwarranted. The matter should be considered closed to prevent unnecessary escalation. I urge Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardana to step in to ensure that this doesn't go any further,” he said.&nbsp;Opposition Parliamentarian and National Freedom Front Leader Wimal Weerawansa also spoke about the incident and remarked that while it is not appropriate to behave disruptively at an airport, there are far more pressing issues that should be addressed within Sri Lanka's airports. “The focus should be on reducing the inconveniences faced by passengers. This person's (Kumarasinghe) reaction could be seen as a reasonable response to his frustration due to delays in the process. Therefore, treat him with understanding and don’t take any excessive measures against him.”In response to the concerns, Alles argued that they wanted to determine whether Kumarasinghe's complaint was due to a genuine issue or if it was influenced by political motives. “We have identified the political party involved and understand the matters behind this incident. Now, there are attempts to spin the narrative in a different way. We are even aware of those who showed up when he was summoned to the Police station. I'm not saying that we intend to pursue this further, but, when such an incident occurs, it's necessary to take action and record a statement. That's what the Police did.”Several Immigration and Emigration officers who were on duty at the BIA on the day of the incident in question had also been summoned to the Airport Police on 5 May, to record statements. Alles claimed on Monday that it had come to light that it was some Immigration and Emigration officers who had videotaped the incident of Kumarasinghe expressing his opposition to the visa issuance processes at the BIA last week.&nbsp;&nbsp;The decision by the Minister of Public Security and the Police to summon Kumarasinghe to record a statement, drew criticism from many, questioning if the move was warranted.&nbsp;

BIA whistleblower being questioned: Alles claims matter to be settled soon  

<ul><li>CBK’s offer for talks with ‘non-corrupt’ Sirisena faction members thrown out&nbsp;</li></ul>The Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) faction led by former President and incumbent Opposition Parliamentarian Maithripala Sirisena stated that they are not ready for a negotiation-based approach with the faction led by former President and incumbent SLFP Patron Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga.With an interim injunction being issued by the Colombo District Court (DC) preventing Sirisena from functioning as the Party Chairperson, a problematic situation arose within the SLFP. The Party has now split into two factions led by Sirisena and Kumaratunga. The two factions have made separate appointments to the Party's key positions such as the Acting Chairperson and General Secretary, some of which have been challenged before Courts.Speaking at a recent media briefing, Kumaratunga expressed a willingness to engage in discussions with whom she claimed are non-corrupt members of the Sirisena led group, aiming to collaborate on revamping the Party. She said that such members are welcome to join the group led by her, and support rebuilding the SLFP, which is currently in a state of crisis.When queried by The Daily Morning as to whether they would be willing to engage in discussions with the Kumaratunga-led faction, SLFP Senior Vice President, Prof. Rohana Luxman Piyadasa, who represents the Sirisena-led group, said that they would not move to have any such discussion.&nbsp;“They are talking about non-corrupt members, but, how many corrupt politicians including Ministers and State Ministers are there in their group? Launching an investigation into the properties that they owned before and after entering the Parliament could help the public gauge their level of corruption.”In response to a complaint filed by Kumaratunga, the Colombo DC recently issued an interim injunction preventing Sirisena from serving as the SLFP Chairperson. This led to a split within the Party into the two said factions. Since then, the SLFP has been facing a turbulent period, with various Court orders being issued against its officials, and even creating uncertainty about the Party's strategy for the upcoming elections.

Intra-SLFP crisis: Sirisena faction rejects CBK faction’s olive branch   

The National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA) said that it functions without any shortcoming in performing its duties and responsibilities, as the vacancies in the NMRA’s upper management caused by the resignations of three Directors – attorney Manoj Gamage, Dr. Priyantha Serasinghe, and Supul Wijesinghe – have already been filled by the Health Ministry.Earlier last month (April), NMRA Chairperson Dr. Ananda Wijewickrama told the media that there was a slight impact on the NMRA’s functions since the Ministry had not been able to take a final decision on filling the vacancies at that time.In this context, when queried by The Daily Morning about the latest status of the NMRA’s Board of Directors, which plays a significant role in taking decisions, its Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Saveen Semage, said yesterday (7) that the shortage of Directors in the upper management is almost addressed with the appointment of three new Directors. Per the law, NMRA Directors are appointed by the Health Minister.&nbsp;“Earlier, three members of the Board of Directors, appointed by the former Health Minister (incumbent Government Parliamentarian Keheliya Rambukwella), resigned, leaving three positions vacant. Recently, the incumbent Health Minister (Dr. Ramesh Pathirana) appointed three new Directors. With those three new Directors, there is no shortage of officers in the upper management,” he said.&nbsp;However, when questioned about the shortage of other officers, Dr. Semage said that measures are currently being taken to address the particular issue as well, according to the policy decisions that have been taken by the Government regarding new recruitments.&nbsp;Three NMRA Directors resigned a few months ago, citing criticism levelled at the NMRA regarding the controversial human intravenous immunoglobulin deal and the irregularities allegedly committed by the current NMRA administration. Tendering his resignation to the Health Minister, Dr. Pathirana, Gamage claimed that Dr. Wijewickrama was unhappy about him (Gamage) as he (Gamage) had opposed him (Dr. Wijewickrama) when he (Dr. Wijewickrama) was purportedly attempting to reverse certain decisions that had been taken by the Board of Directors earlier.

NMRA Director Board vacancies filled 

In the wake of the strike launched by the university non-academic staff trade unions, which continued for about a week, the State Ministry of Higher Education urged the non-academic staff to return to work, considering the inconveniences caused to the students.The continuous strike started by the trade unions of university non-academic staff on 2 May, demands solutions for existing disparities in the salaries of university non-academic staff and the receipt of a monthly compensation allowance. According to the Joint Committee of University Trade Unions of non-academic staff, about 13,000 non-academic staffers have withdrawn from all services since 2 May.Speaking to The Daily Morning yesterday (7), the State Minister of Higher Education Dr. Suren Raghavan said that the university non-academic staff members should engage in discussions with the Government to reach a consensus about the respective demands after returning to work. Stating that the strike has caused a loss of 1.8 million man hours per day while causing a loss of Rs. 125 million per day, he noted that such professionals must be sensitive towards matters and use approaches that are not harmful for the students’ future.&nbsp;He also said that the discussions regarding the demands are handled by the Minister of Education, attorney Dr. Susil Premajayantha, and that he (Dr. Raghavan) does not participate in the discussions.&nbsp;“I believe that these people must be different from others. They shouldn’t behave like other ordinary workers. They are well-educated people. They are dealing with students' academic lives. We respect their right to protest and engage in trade union action. But, I urge them to return to work and engage in discussions to win their demands,” he added.Several attempts to contact Dr. Premajayantha, the Secretary to the Education Ministry Thilaka Jayasundara, and the Vice Chancellors of the Universities of Colombo and Kelaniya proved futile.<blockquote> </blockquote>

Govt. requests uni. non-academics to return to work  

The Court of Appeal (CA) yesterday (7) dismissed the petition filed by Minister, Dr. Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe seeking to suspend the interim injunction issued by the Colombo District Court (DC) preventing him from functioning as the Acting Chairperson of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP).Rajapakshe was appointed as the Acting Chairperson of the SLFP during an Executive Committee meeting held on 21 April, by the Party’s faction led by former President and former Chairperson (his holding of the said post was suspended by way of a Court order) and incumbent Opposition Parliamentarian Maithripala Sirisena.On 24 April, the Colombo DC issued an injunction order preventing Rajapakshe from functioning as the Acting Chairperson of the SLFP.The Court has also issued an injunction order preventing Opposition MP Sarathie Dushmantha Mithrapala from functioning as the Acting General Secretary of the SLFP.&nbsp;Meanwhile, the Court had issued another injunction preventing the implementation of the decisions taken by Mithrapala.The Colombo District Judge issued these injunctions after considering a plaint submitted by Minister Mahinda Amaraweera, State Minister Lasantha Alagiyawanna, and Opposition MP Duminda Dissanayake.It was mentioned in the order that these injunctions will remain in effect until today (8).&nbsp;However, Rajapakshe had later filed a petition with the CA, seeking to invalidate the recent order issued by the Colombo DC preventing him from functioning as the Acting Chairperson of the SLFP.

Wijeyadasa’s SLFP Acting Chair petition dismissed

<ul><li> Tourism Minister distances himself visa price hike decision</li></ul>The Ministry of Public Security stated that the Cabinet of Ministers only decided to include the 30 days single-entry visa, which had not been included in the new online and on-arrival visa issuance system, to the relevant system, and that all other changes recently made to the visa processes will remain the same.Controversy erupted last week after several changes were made to the online and on-arrival visa processes, including the introduction of several new visa categories with relatively-high prices. However, it was later reported that the Cabinet had decided to maintain the visa fee at $ 50.Since the Public Security Minister Tiran Alles, under whose purview the Department of Immigration and Emigration comes, said on Monday (6) that the fee for a certain category visa had been increased to $ 75, The Daily Morning queried as to whether there would be any change to that decision with the latest Cabinet decision. In response, he said that there would be no such change.“The 30 days single entry visa issued at $ 50 had not been included in the system. The Cabinet decision was to add it to the system. It is the same thing that I said at the media briefing before the Cabinet meeting on Monday (6),” he said.According to Alles, other changes made to the visa processes including the involvement of GBS Technology Services, IVS Global-FZCO and VF Worldwide Holdings Limited/VFS Global in managing the online and on-arrival visas, will remain unchanged.It is also reported that Minister of Tourism Harin Fernando had raised concerns over the changes made to the visa processes at the Cabinet meeting on Monday. Attempts to contact Fernando proved futile. Taking to social media platform X, previously known as Twitter, Minister Fernando charged that when the said proposals were put forward, the charges of the VFS company were not mentioned. “Since it came to light, I have objected to the proposal,” Fernando tweeted on Monday (6).&nbsp;Controversy flared up last week after video clips circulated on social media platforms showing an incoming passenger at the Bandaranaike International Airport in Katunayake claiming that ‘Indian’ personnel were handling Sri Lanka's immigration and emigration processes. It was subsequently disclosed that the Public Security Ministry had outsourced the visa processing to GBS Technology Services and IVS Global-FZCO, with VFS Global serving as the technology partner. Subsequently, a discussion on the increases in fees for certain categories of visa also emerged, with many warning that the move would have a negative impact on the tourism industry.

Visa processing scandal: Vis-related changes to remain 

<ul><li>Charitha Herath urges SOC/COPF probe on discrepancies between CBSL Annual Econ Review &amp; Finance Min.’s Fiscal Mgt. Report</li></ul>Amidst various concerns being raised over the independence granted to the&nbsp;Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) through the recently passed CBSL Act, Opposition Parliamentarian Prof. Charitha Herath yesterday (7) claimed that the CBSL is currently functioning as an institution that is not part of the State.Speaking in the Parliament yesterday, Prof. Herath raised several concerns regarding the alleged arbitrary behaviour of the CBSL administration, highlighting certain errors in the inaugural Annual Economic Review released by the CBSL recently. Stating that the report carries certain erroneous technical terms, he noted that certain terms and sentences of the report suggest that the CBSL is not a part of the State.&nbsp;“This report starts by saying 'the CBSL and the State' which suggests that the CBSL and the State are two separate entities. That should be the Government. There is a separate explanation given to the term ‘Government’ in our Constitution. Obviously, we can classify the CBSL and the Government as two entities. But, we cannot do it with the State since all these entities are operated under the State,” he added.&nbsp;He also said that the CBSL has the mindset that it is not a part of the State, which could in turn cause many issues in the future. “The CBSL has presented the Annual Economic Review report. The Ministry of Finance also presented the Fiscal Management Report for 2023-2024. Both of these reports are required to be submitted by the CBSL under the provisions of the CBSL Act. However, I would like to raise within this House the fact that there are a number of serious discrepancies between both the reports. As per the Standing Orders, I suggest that either a Sectoral Oversight Committee (SOC) or the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) should carry out an investigation to assess the information provided in them,” he said.Meanwhile, Opposition MP Wimal Weerawansa and the Chief Opposition Whip Lakshman Kiriella raised concerns regarding the CBSL's decision to increase its salary, even though the CBSL has incurred huge losses during the past few years. MP Kiriella claimed that the CBSL took the move when it incurred a loss of around Rs. 1,000 million.Earlier, on Monday (6), Opposition MP Udaya Gammanpila claimed that the CBSL had increased the salaries of its employees by the biggest margin in its history, despite having recorded losses of billions of rupees for two consecutive years. “The net loss of the CBSL in 2023 was Rs. 114 billion. In 2022, the net loss was Rs. 374 billion. If a certain institute incurs losses continuously, the privileges of the said institution, the bonuses and salary increments will be limited and suspended,” he said while speaking to reporters in Colombo.&nbsp;However, he charged that despite having continuously incurred great losses for several years, the CBSL is giving its employees the highest salary hikes. “Even if it’s profitable, it’s still public money.” Gammanpila stated that one method that the CBSL can make profits is by providing the Government and banks with credit and collecting the interest. This is possible for the CBSL because it has the sole authority for printing money, he said.&nbsp;Meanwhile, the profit obtained from the management of the Government’s official foreign exchange reserves is also a source of income for the CBSL and that means that the funds held by the CBSL are public money, he asserted.&nbsp;Therefore, he called for the immediate resignation of the Governor and the Governing Board of the CBSL for allegedly “deceiving the country” and for claiming that the CBSL is not maintained with the people’s money.

P’ment queries CBSL’s ‘excess independence’ 

The Parliamentary Select Committee appointed to investigate the issues that have arisen related to the Nilwala River and the other water bodies in the Matara District, and to make recommendations for the development of a set of new reconstruction-related proposals has decided to appoint a panel of experts from the Universities of Ruhuna, Peradeniya, and Moratuwa to identify the issues and report on the matter with immediate effect.The Committee also decided to discuss with the people of the affected area to obtain their inputs on solutions to those problems.The Committee also paid attention to the inconvenience faced by the residents of the area due to the overflowing of the Nilwala River even during short rains. The Committee stated that in this situation, the farmers of the said area have not been able to cultivate for many seasons and that therefore, solutions should be sought before the next monsoon.&nbsp;Committee Chairperson, Minister of Wildlife and Forest Resources Conservation, and Irrigation,Pavithradevi Wanniarachchi pointed out that the cleaning of the main canals where the water flows from the Nilwala River has already begun before the upcoming rainy weather.

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