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Speaker Karu Jayasuriya has ordered an inquiry into the controversial statements made by State Minister Vijayakala Maheswaran regarding the recent controversial statement made by her claiming the LTTE should be formed again. 

According to sources he informed the parliament on the inquiry after the MPs of the joint opposition raised their voices against the statements made by her. They had requested she also be removed from the parliamentary seat as well as the Ministerial post. 

Meanwhile he has also asked the Attorney General to examine the comments and see if any laws have been violated and to take action against her accordingly.

Minister of Ports, Mahinda Samarasinghe has been appointed as the new SLFP spokesman it is reported. 

The decision was taken at an SLFP committee meeting headed by President Maithripala Sirisena last night at his official residence. 

The former spokesman was MP Dilan Perera, who walked out of the government recently. Therefore he has been removed from the post sources said.

Transparency International Sri Lanka (TISL) met with key legislators last week to present the legislative brief on the National Audit Bill detailing key amendments to be made in committee stage, ahead of the debate on the Bill which will commence in Parliament on Thursday (5).

Maheshi Herat, Attorney-at-Law, the author of the legislative brief, presented the document to Eran Wickramaratne, State Minister of Finance, Sunil Handunneththi, the Chairman of the Committee on Public Enterprises and Dinesh Gunawardena, the leader of the Joint Opposition Parliamentary Group.

The legislative brief highlights four key areas of concern with the provisions of the existing draft of the National Audit Bill, which have been identified following extensive scrutiny and consultations with stakeholders. These concerns surround the lack of accountability in the surcharging procedure, weaknesses in the appeals process, provisions which curtail the investigative powers of the Auditor General and provisions which are in contravention of the Right to Information Act.

The National Audit Bill has three key provisions. First the power of surcharge to impose personal financial responsibility on individuals who have caused financial loss to a State entity through fraud, negligence, misappropriation or corruption; second the power to examine bank accounts in which the Auditor General believes that monies belonging to a State entity have been fraudulent, irregularly or wrongfully deposited; and third an independent budgeting mechanism designed to safeguard the independence of the prospective National Audit Office.

TISL says they strongly believe that if these amendments are incorporated in the final Act, this will significantly strengthen fiscal accountability in the public sector.

With Chinese companies involved in as much as 40 percent of the construction projects in Sri Lanka, a trade body here has moved a Cabinet paper demanding foreign companies engaged in such works should have local partners. 

The Ceylon Institute of Builders (CIoB), an illustrious group of engineers and builders of Sri Lanka, said the China International Contractors Association (CHINCA) has a stake in 40 per cent of construction projects in the country, Colombo Gazette reported.

"In the next three years CHINCA wants to increase their stake in the Sri Lankan construction industry to 70 percent of total projects. This can be detrimental to our local firms," CIoB President Rohan Karunarathna said at the opening of the seventh construction industry exhibition titled 'Construction Expo 2018' here on Friday. 

"As a result, the Construction Chamber of Sri Lanka has signed an MoU with CHINCA to share all their projects here with Lankan construction firms so that the risk is mitigated," he said. 

"We have also moved a cabinet paper that all such projects by foreign firms from any country should have a Sri Lankan partner from now on," Karunarathna added.

The report said over 240 local and international vendors, including 20 Indian companies and 30 Chinese firms, displayed a wide spectrum of construction products, services and information for the local construction sector during the exhibition.

It is reported that the Prime Minister has requested the President to remove State Minister Vijayakala Maheswaran from the post of Minister until a proper investigation on her statement calling for the resurgence of the LTTE is duly conducted.

According to political sources, the President has also agreed to the request.

The Sri Lankan government has decided to write off more than LKR 1 billion worth of micro-credit loans given by state and private financial institutions in the Northern, Eastern and North Central Provinces. State Finance Minister Eran Wickramaratne said that the Government intervention was to ease the hardships caused to families which had been severely affected by this debt crisis.

“As the Government will bear the cost for the debt relief, this initiative will be carried out through government institutions since we are dealing with the taxpayers’ money. Details are being worked out,” he said. The Central Bank as the regulator of micro-finance institutions , is also involved in this initiative and would on July 22 issue a statement, giving details and procedures.

It also learnt that the repayment scheme for those caught in the debt trap would cover loans of LKR 100,000 or less. The beneficiaries will also include women-headed households in eight drought-affected districts of the three provinces. The Treasury has allocated more than Rs one billion for this purpose.

The State Minister said that unregulated lenders had indulged in ‘bad credit practices’ in the war-affected areas, at a time when people were trying to rebuild their lives. Some unregulated companies ventured to these places just to make money. The war-affected people were not familiar with the practices of micro-credit schemes and their crisis had even affected their social life, while the companies were indifferent to the plight of these debt-ridden people, the state minister said. 

According to the Finance Ministry’s 2017 report, 11 new applications sought licenses to engage in micro finance lending last year. The total outstanding loan portfolio of major state micro finance institutions stood at LKR 263 billion at the end of last year.

“The school education in the country can play a major role in building national reconciliation and peace (and) we should take steps to build mutual trust and brotherhood among the children irrespective of their race and religion, through school education”, J.K Rajapaksha, Director of the Education Unit of the Office for Unity and Reconciliation (ONUR) said. 

He made these remarks at the five-day residential camp call “Sahodara Paasal / Paadasalai” held from 22nd to 27th June 2018 at Y-Gro Social Development Center in Kurunagala organized by the ONUR.

He pointed out that, the key objective of “Sahodara Paasal / Paadasalai” programme is to create a pool of facilitators specialized in reconciliation, among teachers and education officials in the Provinces while connecting thousands of students to become change-makers in their communities.

The unique way in which the programme is organized, allows the students to interact with and experience each others’ ethnic, linguistic, cultural and religious differences, and to appreciate them and respect the diversity we are blessed with as Sri Lankans,

He also said that this camp will support to build a better future generation with positive thinking.

The camp in Kurunegala was attended by schools from the Western, Uva and Eastern Provinces, with 180 students and 36 teachers from various ethnic and religious backgrounds.

Hundreds of students representing diverse ethnic, religious, and linguistic backgrounds came together for a five-day residential camp where they learned to live together. They had the opportunity to understand and appreciate diverse subjects related to reconciliation.

They engaged in activities, and formulated an action plan to follow up before heading to their respective communities to work towards reconciliation.
During the programme, teachers from the respective schools participated in sessions on conflict transformation in order to develop their understanding of their role in the process of creating national unity and reconciliation.

The Government of Republic of Korea has agreed to provide two concessional loans for USD 14 million (Approximately LKR 2,240 million) to Supply of 190 nos. of Garbage Collecting Compactors to Local Authorities of Sri Lanka in line with the Government’s target of strengthening local authorities with necessary equipment and technology to introduce modern solid waste management practices.

Increasing volume of Solid waste generated in the urban and sub urban areas has become a nation -wide problem and the rapid growth of population in urban areas, recent changes of consumption pattern and growing  industrial and economic activities have  directly associated with this chronic problem of the country.

The Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF) of the Export-Import Bank (Exim Bank) of Korea has agreed to provide two loans in Korean Won not exceeding the equivalent of US$ 14,000,000 to supply 190 Nos of garbage collecting compactors to improve the garbage collecting capacity of 84 local authorities in Sri Lanka.The Finance Ministry said that the projects will be implemented by the Ministry of Provincial Councils, Local Government and Sports.


Secretary to the Treasury Dr.R H S Samarathunga and Mr. Jung Sung-soo, Chief Representative of the Export- Import Bank of Korea signed the agreement at the Ministry of Finance today.

The New York Times sounded alarm Tuesday over an "intimidation campaign" being waged against two Sri Lankan reporters who assisted the newspaper's investigation into alleged corruption involving former president Mahinda Rajapakse.

The pair have been subjected to intense personal abuse on social media and public criticism by parliamentarians loyal to Rajapakse since the report was published late last month.

"It is unacceptable for journalists to be intimidated this way. This action appears intended to silence critics and curb press freedoms, and ultimately deprive Sri Lankans of information in the public interest," the New York Times said in a statement Tuesday.

"The Times expects the Sri Lankan authorities to ensure the safety of journalists working for our -- or any -- news organisation."

Rajapakse's son Namal, a local legislator, said "at no time" did he or his father intimidate the journalists.

"Just like the press has a right to criticise politicians, don't we also have the right to 'publicly criticise' reporting we believe to be faulty?" he posted on Twitter.

The NYT investigation alleges Rajapakse's campaign took millions in bribes for his failed election bid from a Chinese state-owned company which built a controversial port on the island.

The report also accused Rajapakse's regime of taking huge loans for the port at massive interest rates.

Sri Lanka has been unable to pay the debt and agreed last year to give China a 70 percent stake in the strategic port in the Indian Ocean.

In a statement at the weekend Rajapakse -- a former strongman making a political comeback in Sri Lanka -- denied receiving campaign funding from the Chinese and accused the New York Times of a smear campaign against him.

The Times report says Rajapakse and his aides did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

he Chinese embassy in Colombo also denied the report and said it was "full of political prejudice and completely inconsistent with the fact".

There has been no official comment from the Sri Lankan government.

The revelations have dominated headlines in Sri Lanka and enraged Rajapakse supporters, who have accused the duo of pro-government bias and acting in the interest of foreigners.

Rajapakse and several members of his family are currently under investigation for large-scale financial fraud and murder. All deny any wrongdoing and in turn accuse the new government of a political vendetta.

Rajapakse was defeated in 2015 by President Maithripala Sirisena after a decade of iron-fisted rule in which he oversaw the bloody end to Sri Lanka's civil war and quashed dissidents and curbed media freedoms.

Seventeen journalists and media employees were murdered during his time in office.

Sirisena was elected promising to restore press freedom and democratic norms.

Sri Lanka is ranked 131 of 180 nations on Reporters Without Borders world press freedom index, an improvement of 10 places from the year before.

SLFP claims that they have not been informed of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s decision to sue the New York Times over the recent article alleging that he had taken bribes from China Harbour to fund his presidential campaign which he claims are false allegations. The SLFP commented on this in response to a statement made by Rajapaksa at a public meeting of the SLPP recently held in Kurunegala.

At the event Rajapaksa had said : 

“Everyone is saying I should initiate legal action. Therefore I have prepared to send a letter of demand now. The party will also do the same because they have accused me of giving this money to the party and not for my personal use. We have given instructions to the lawyers accordingly”.

Not informed of filing a case

However, when inquired, SLFP and the UPFA both said they have not been informed by the Mahinda Rajapaksa faction to initiate legal action against the NYT.

They also said facing serious allegations the former President is now attempting to mislead the public by distorting facts that were reported by the publication.

Instead, they point out that no mention had been made of giving the received funds to either political party. 

The relevant section in the NYT report is as follows : 

At least $7.6 million was dispensed from China Harbor’s account at Standard Chartered Bank to affiliates of Mr. Rajapaksa’s campaign, according to a document, seen by The Times, from an active internal government investigation. The document details China Harbor’s bank account number — ownership of which was verified — and intelligence gleaned from questioning of the people to whom the checks were made out.

With 10 days to go before polls opened, around $3.7 million was distributed in checks: $678,000 to print campaign T-shirts and other promotional material and $297,000 to buy supporters gifts, including women’s saris. Another $38,000 was paid to a popular Buddhist monk who was supporting Mr. Rajapaksa’s electoral bid, while two checks totalling $1.7 million were delivered by volunteers to Temple Trees, his official residence.

Most of the payments were from a sub-account controlled by China Harbor, named “HPDP Phase 2,” shorthand for Hambantota Port Development Project.

They also point out that the recent communique issued by Rajapaksa does not address the exact allegations being levelled against him. This fact has also been pointed out by Political analysts. 

Quoting his press release they say : 

In his communique, he has replied to the allegations through the below section,

"China harbour did not provide any funds to my 2015 Presidential bid. Despite claiming that the cash was given to my acquaintances and managers of my campaign by sending the cheques to the Temple trees through volunteers they have been vague about the details. This is a purposeful attempt to sling mud”

However the allegations against him are far worse.

They say the direct allegation is against Rajapaksa with the report saying the company in charge of constructing the Hambantota harbour had given him USD 7.6 Million for his campaign while revealing what the money was used for (around $3.7 million was distributed in checks: $678,000 to print campaign T-shirts and other promotional material and $297,000 to buy supporters gifts, including women’s saris. Another $38,000 was paid to a popular Buddhist monk who was supporting Mr. Rajapaksa’s electoral bid) while even mentioning the accounts the money was dispensed from.

Who believes anything Godahewa says? 

However people who are out on bail for corruption charges such as Nalaka Godahewa has not stepped in to absolve Rajapaksa of these accusations. They say the NYT revelations are nothing but a smear campaign. Instead of addressing each allegation directly they appear to be using words to distort the report while trying to shift public focus away from the issues. 

With him not responding to the allegations, we have now had to find the truth of the report ourselves. 

But the issue is so called patriot Rajapaksa did not use either system and instead took out a loan from the Chinese Exim Bank while making payments from it to China harbour taking the investment back to the country of origin. 

Severity of the allegations

It is this China Harbour that gives funds for his 2015 campaign. 

World Bank Revelations

The main company of China Harbour, China Communication Construction was blacklisted by the World Bank preventing them from bidding for any of their projects for the next seven years starting from 2009 due to a corrupt deal they were involved in the Philippines. 

China Harbour track record in Bangladesh 


Meanwhile since 2018 China harbour has been banned in Bangladesh with the project by them halted due to providing birbe of USD 100 000 to a government officer for a road development project. 

This is the company that the Rajapaksa’s handed over the harbour construction after taking loans for massive interest sums proving they have pawned the country off in return of commissions from these projects. 

They say the Swedish television has proved how under the Rajapaksa regime the country fell in to the Chinese debt trap and that Rajapaksa should now address these allegations in a proper manner.

United National Party (UNP) is said to have decided to call for a debate on the New York Times article which has caused much controversy recently. The article had alleged that China Harbour, the contractors of the Hambantota Port had given USD 7.6 million to Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa to fund his election campaign. 

The UNP decided to call for a debate after it was suggested by Deputy Minister Ranjan Ramanayake yesterday at the party’s parliamentary group meeting held yesterday at the Temple Trees chaired by Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe. Following the meeting Ramanayake said it was decided that the debate will be held next week.

The group of 16 SLFP parliamentarians who left the government is expected to join the Joint Opposition parliamentary meeting scheduled to be held today. MP Chandima Weerakkody belonging to the group claimed they have been invited for the meeting. Sources say it the group meeting set to be held at 4 pm will be chaired by the former President Mahinda Rajapaksa. 

However recently MP Dayasiri Jayasekara who walked out of the government along with the 15 other MP’s had expressed some reservations regarding joining the JO officially. He was quoted as saying he does not intend to gain membership of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) the main party of the JO. Basil Rajapaksa, SLPP stalwart had earlier said the group must decide and gain membership of the SLPP if they are to join the JO.