Sumith Wijesinghe, Chairman of the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) says that there is no risk of the Sapugaskanda Oil Refinery being closed as Singapore has agreed to supply crude oil to Sri Lanka on a loan basis.
He said that crude oil would be procured from Singapore in six stages under an agreement to settle the debt within 180 days.
He also said that the Sapugaskanda oil refinery will be able to continue operations as the stocks of crude oil will reach Sri Lanka by mid-January.
The OIC of the Gandara Police Station in Matara has been arrested on a charge of sexually harassing an amateur police constable.
The Matara Children and Women’s Bureau arrested the OIC last night (24).
The OIC has been accused of sexually harassing a female police constable who was on duty at the Gandara police station the day before yesterday’s morning.
The OIC was produced before the Matara Magistrate’s Court and remanded till the 28th of this month.
The Minister of Trade Bandula Gunawardena has requested the public to cultivate anything in their backyards as it is difficult to control the prices of goods at this time.
It is difficult to control prices at this time because there is a shortage of goods in the world market and in the Sri Lankan market. If there is a price control when there is a shortage there will be a huge black market price. Therefore, the only thing that can be done to prevent this situation is for the government to intervene and make the market competitive.
We have proposed to launch an Accelerated Cultivation Program to provide a few chili plants, a brinjal plant, a spinach vine and other things that can bear fruit in a short period of time in every one of our homes so that they can bear fruit during the Sinhala New Year. Plant something in your own backyard, in this January. Increasing production is the only answer to this problem of the cost of living. “
Minister Bandula Gunawardena stated this while expressing his views to the media in Thambuththegama yesterday (25).
The passing of the RTI Act was not only eagerly awaited by the people of the country, it also proved to be a turning point in the social and political situation in our country. The adoption of the legislation can also be seen as a victory for the civil society of the country who strive to create a more a-political system of democracy and governance in the land.
With the tenure of the first RTI Commission coming to an end earlier this year, a new RTI Commission was appointed. The appointments were made by the President based on the recommendations of the parliamentary council, as set out in the 20th amendment to the constitution.
As a group of individuals who have been working to ensure the right to information of the citizens of the country, our attention was focused on the appointment of the new RTI Commission. We signed the earlier press release to indicate that the newly appointed Chairman of the Commission was unsuitable to hold the position. This stance remains unchanged and was the primary focal point of the earlier press release.
We also wish to clarify our stance regarding the composition of the RTI commission. We reiterate that the composition of the commission needs to ensure representation of minorities as well as individuals who are natively fluent in all official languages of the country. The recent resignation of one of the appointed commissioners provides an opportunity for the administration to rectify this situation. Our earlier press release was not meant to be a rejection or protest against the other commissioners that have already been appointed.
We are of the firm belief that in order to uphold the reputation of the RTI Commission as well as to protect the important work that it carries out, an individual of integrity who is well respected in society should take the helm of the commission as it’s chairperson.
Nadishani Perera
– Executive Director, Transparency International Sri Lanka
Rohana Hettiarachchi
– Executive Director, People’s Action for Free and Fair Elections
Dr. Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu
– Executive Director, Centre for Policy Alternatives
Dr. Sakuntala Kadirgamar
– Executive Director, Law & Society Trust (LST)
Lionel Guruge
– Senior Researcher, Centre for Policy Alternatives
Manjula Gajanayake
– National Coordinator, Centre for Monitoring Election Violence (CMEV)
Philip Dissanayake
– Executive Director, Right to Life Human Rights Centre
Maithreyi Rajasingam
– Executive Director, Viluthu
Thilak Kariyawasam
– President, Food First Information & Action Network of Sri Lanka (FIAN)
Nishantha Preethiraj
– National Organizer, National Deshodaya Assembly
The State Enterprise Restructuring Board has tabled a proposal to suspend government funds received to five state-run bodies and restructure them.
These bodies include SriLankan Airlines, the Ceylon Electricity Board, the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation, the Water Supply and Drainage Board and the Sri Lanka Transport Board.
Out of 527 state-run enterprises, 77 incurred a loss of Rs. 1.2 trillion during the period of 2006 – 2020, while another 55 earned a profit of Rs. 1.27 trillion accounting to the same period.
Among the bodies proposed for restructuring, SriLankan Airlines incurred a total loss of Rs. 330 billion and amount borrowed from the Treasury amounts to Rs. 43.5 billion (Rs.43,530,000,000.00).
MIAP
The ongoing strike action launched by railway station masters will be intensified due to the authorities’ ill response to the demands, said the Railway Station Masters’ Association.
Accordingly, the station masters will be off from all duties from midnight tomorrow (26).
The issuance of train tickets and the reception of parcels have been halted due to the ongoing strike and there could be a risk of railway services being disrupted from tomorrow, the Union emphasised.
The above trade union action was taken based on several demands, to which no positive feedback was received from the authorities yet.
The situation has led the passengers to travel free of charge without tickets, incurring a daily loss of Rs. 09 million to the Railway Department.
P.B. Jayasundara has tendered resignation to the post of President’s Secretary, political sources claim.
His letter of resignation has been handed over to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, making it effective from January 31, 2022.
Following months of objection from a number of Cabinet ministers, rumours went on circulation that the President’s Secretary was about to resign from his post, but none confirmed.
Six countries which are facing a recession amidst the Covid-19 pandemic have approached the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for assistance, revealed Leader of the United National Party (UNP) MP Ranil Wickremesinghe.
The UNP Leader added that neither of the countries are entitled to harmful or unworkable conditions imposed by the IMF.
Pointing out that Sri Lanka has no other option but to seek the IMF’s support to resolve the dollar crisis, Wickremesinghe added that he does not believe that Sri Lanka will be entitled to any unavoidable or unfavourable conditions in being granted debt assistance.
The UNP Leader on many previous occasions had urged the government to approach the IMF in resolving the ongoing dollar deficit.
The dollar deficit from which Sri Lanka suffers has crippled the country, making it unable to purchase the required volumes of fuel and all attempts by the government to obtain a concession for fuel have failed to date.
MIAP
The ban of chemical fertiliser and pesticide imports last April has reportedly triggered a scarcity of food in the country following six months of its implementation.
The situation has led to a decline of supply of vegetables and fruits to the wholesale market and the available fruits and vegetable hence are not in good condition due to the shortage of fertiliser, correspondents revealed.
The supply of vegetables and fruits to the Colombo Manning Market, the country’s leading vegetable pool, has also dropped significantly and vegetable prices have doubled.
The is mainly due to the decline of yields amid the fertiliser ban, traders told media. As the Manning Market is the food distribution hub of Sri Lanka, the decision to seize fertiliser imports has affected the supply of vegetables in a chain reaction.
In a move of solving the crisis, the government has relaxed the policy by allowing the private sector to import fertiliser and has decided seize the provision of the state-sponsored subsidy.
This will probably be forcing the farmers to purchase fertiliser at higher prices in the future, but at least three more months will be consumed to harvest the new crop using chemical fertiliser.
In the backdrop, the country may predictably be facing a scarcity of food in the near future.
MIAP
People have begun to queue themselves at shops to purchase kerosene, following many reports of gas explosions leading to a demand-drop.
There are many queues for gas and milk powder all over the country at present.
The event was in the recent past where there were long queues for essential commodities such as sugar, rice and fuel.
MIAP
