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A Joint Opposition MP hailing from Ratnapura is said to be making arrangements to join the Sri Lanka Freedom Party today, sources at the Presidential Secretariat revealed.

The MP in question has met with President Maithripala Sirisena on the 12th of December and agreed to extend his support to the SLFP.

Siddi Mohamed Farook was appointed as the Chairman of the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation with immediate effect by the Minister of Finance and Media, Mangala Samaraweera.

Farook had his primary education at Royal College and has a BA in International Trade from the Chu Hai College in Hong Kong. An entrepreneur specializing in the field of mobile telecommunications, he served as the Director/CEO of Pan Asian Power PLC from 2009-2017.

Colombo, Sri Lanka –The world has experienced continued and steep democratic progress, however this progress has slowed down over the past decade. Challenges and threats have emerged in specific countries and regions, according to the first edition of The Global State of Democracy publication from The International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA). Now, democracy is at a crossroads and continuous actions must be taken to safeguard and protect it.

A regional launch of The Global State of Democracy: Exploring Democracy’s Resilience will be held at the Asia-Pacific Conference on Resilience of Democracy: “21st Century Solutions for 21st Century Challenges to Democracy”, organised at Mövenpick Hotel, Colombo, Sri Lanka on 13-14 December 2017.

The conference brings together policymakers, experts, academics, civil society groups and young professionals from across the Asia-Pacific region to discuss innovative, actionable solutions to the challenges of democracy as identified in the Global State of Democracy publication.

The conference will focus on three themes: 1) democracy’s resilience to backsliding, 2) influence of money in politics, corruption, and 3) inclusive peace building in conflict-affected states. A special panel session composed of high-level officials and experts highlights the second day of the conference bringing state of democracy in Sri Lanka on focus as well.

The regional launch is organized by International IDEA, the Center for Policy Alternatives (CPA),and Democracy Reporting International (DRI).

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President Maithripala Sirisena has intervened to address the fertiliser shortage in the country by requesting for 75,000 MT of fertilizer to be sent to Sri Lanka from Pakistan. The President has made to request directly from Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi a Ministry official said.

The move comes in the wake of a meeting chaired by Sirisena to discuss the shortage faced by farmers in the country.

According to Ministry sources, the Pakistani counterpart has agreed to the request made by President Sirisena.

The shipment is expected in the country by end-December to ensure that farmers have fertilizer to use for the current season, which comes after a drawn-out drought affecting the cultivation for over three seasons, President Sirisena had informed Cabinet yesterday.

The fertiliser shortage experienced by farmers has been due to exports of fertilizer from Pakistan being suspended to enable domestic use while the rising prices of fertiliser in the world market have also affected domestic supply with companies being reluctant to import stocks for sale as they have to adhere to the Maximum Retail Price (MRP) of Rs. 2,500 which will cut into their profits.

SLFP is set to rescind the party memberships of those who support the Joint Opposition indirectly or directly in the upcoming polls while also expelling them from their MP positions. The decision has been taken by the Central Committee of the party.

UPFA Secretary Minister Mahinda Amaraweera is said to have informed the Central Committee to look into the party members next in line that should be appointed as MPs once the expulsion of the JO supporters from the party takes place.

According to the preferential votes list the next in line to become parliamentarians in the Colombo district appears to be Dhanasiri Amaratunga, Jagath Kumara, Kanthi Kodikara, Mahesh Almeida, Janaka Weliwatta, Prasanna Solangaarachchi and Chandana Kathriarachchi.

Meanwhile, according to the Gampaha list, the names that have cropped up are of Kokila Gunawardena, Upul Rajapaksha, Gunasiri Jayanath, Ruwan Ranatunga, Felix Perera, Pandu Bandaranaike, Sarath Kumara GUnaratne, and Thilak Waragoda.

Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna of which Basil Rajapaksa is the National Organizer is set to contest the upcoming polls from the ‘flower bud’ symbol under the party mane of ‘Ekabadda Podujana Peramuna’.

 The letter sent by Minister Amaraweera is as follows :

The Colombo Fort Magistrate ordered today that former Navy Media Spokesperson Commodore D.K.P. Dassanayake and six Naval Officers be further remanded until the 22nd of this month.

The former Navy spokesman was arrested by the CID in July with regard to the abduction and subsequent disappearance of 11 Tamil youth in 2008.

Pic : The Sunday Times

President Maithripala Sirisena has appointed new Secretaries to six ministries, the Presidential Media Division said yesterday.

Accordingly, Jagath Wijeweera has been appointed as the Secretary to the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Development.

D.G.M.V. Hapuarachchi has been appointed as the Secretary to the Ministry of City Planning and Water Supply and Padmasiri Jayamanna as the Secretary to the Ministry of Law and Order and Southern Development.

M.M.P.K. Mayadunne has been assigned as the Secretary to the Ministry of Special Assignments and R.M.D.B. Meegasmulla has been appointed as the Secretary to the Ministry of Post, Postal Services and Muslim Religious Affairs.

Gampaha District MP Indika Anuradha has claimed that it was the President that informed parliamentarians of the SLFP to form the Joint Opposition.

The MP made these comments while taking part in the television political program recently.

Further expressing his views during the program the MP said he was instructed to join the JO if he does not wish to join the government and vote against acts and proposals brought by the government if they disagree with them

He also went on to claim that the team of SLFP MPs in the JO have not left the freedom party yet and continues to voice their dissent due to the SLFP policy to support the UNP in their policies and remain in the government.

However, when questioned in this regard a spokesperson for the government said the President at no time has given any such instruction and these are pathetic statements being made by the henchman of Basil Rajapaksa.

He also went on to say that it's now been revealed who is carrying out the plans to weaken the SLFP and those who support the policies of the party should be within it and not join forces with those who are attempting to destroy it.

The leader of the Mahajana Eksath Peramuna, Dinesh Gunawardena has laid the blame of Digamadulla district parliamentarian Sriyani Wijewickrama leaving the Joint Opposition directly on UPFA MP from the same district Wimalaweera Dissanayake.

According to him, Wijewickrama left the JO as Wimalaweera Dissanayake had acted in an arbitrary manner when handing out nominations for the local government polls in the Digamadulla district.

While all JO parties involved had attempted to discuss the issues regarding the nominations of the Digamadulla district to resolve it in a fair manner, however, Dissanayake had refused any form of Discussion, Gunawardene had said.

 No comments on Basil

While he condemned the MP for leaving the JO he claimed that action will be taken by the Mahajana Eksath Peramuna against her.

Though Wimalaweera Dissanayake is a known supporter of Basil Rajapaksa, however, Dinesh Gunawardena is said to be afraid to make any comments against Basil in the public arena.

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dinesh-and-wimal-upset-anyone-can-leave-says-mahinda

Wimal Weerawansa has declared that Gotabaya is the best possible ‘Rajapaksa’ candidate to take over the leadership of their political camp following the former President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

The MP has made these comments during an interview recently.

We lifted Mahinda up

According to the Weerawansa at the completion of February 18, 2015, Nugegoda rally “If not for these people I would have spent my time thinking and died of it” Mahinda Rajapaksa had said. However, while they helped to strengthen the JO Weerawansa had expressed his disappointment that other parties except for the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna have not received a fair number of nominations in the upcoming election.

Attempts to distance Nationalist parties

While claiming such a move is extremely ungrateful Weerawansa has also said it appears to be an attempt to get rid of other parties within the JO. “There are serious doubts if certain individuals are attempting to distance other nationalist parties from each other” he was quoted as saying.

 Medamulana power struggle

Meanwhile, political insiders claim the main reason for the rifts within the JO is due to the ongoing power struggle inside the Rajapaksa family finally coming to a head.

As the reports claim parties who had suggested the leadership be taken over by Gotabaya after Mahinda Rajapaksa have not received a significant number of nominations within the Podujana Peramuna.

Wimal agrees - Mahinda disagrees

According to sources, many parties within the JO have been suggesting for Gotabaya to succeed Mahinda Rajapaksa. However many within the Rajapaksa family feels that Namal should be groomed as the successor instead and there is ample of time till 2025 for this cause.

It is being reported that a media campaign has been launched by a former UNP Minister to divert the attention on the Presidential Bond Commission report that has given rise to much controversy in the country.

According to reports the editor of Lanka e news and several social media pages which received advertisements amounting to millions of rupees during this politicians tenure as a Minister are now being used in this mudslinging media campaign.

Since the last few days, several prominent names said to be involved in the disappearance of Pradeep Eknaligoda and other similar crimes during the Rajapaksa regime are being circulated in society as a result.

When inquiries were made regarding the news being circulated a government spokesperson said this politician who is said to have had the most serious allegations of corruption levelled against him out of anyone in the Yahapalana government and as a result caused a social backlash against the government has embarked on this mudslinging campaign against those he believes who was responsible in him losing his ministerial portfolio.

The spokesperson further stated that the media operation which is conducted by those who would write against anyone for financial gain appears to be turning against them now.

He went on to say that word of mouth and mudslinging campaigns are now out of date methods with the public only believing reports that are presented with substantial proof.

According to the site while President Maithripala Sirisena was portrayed as the best President in the world, after the appointment of the Bond Commision and the said Politician’s corruptions were revealed the President was made to seem as the worst ruler in the world by the site the Spokesperson said.

Citing examples the spokesperson said news stories run by the lanka e news website prior to the President appointing a commision to look into the Bond scam and thereafter should be scrutinized and that itself is sufficient to prove this premise.

According to the Spokesperson following the revelations regarding his corrupt practices before the Bond Commision he had also attempted to carry out a campaign blaming the Prime Minister for the Bond Scam and millions were paid to Rajapaksa media activists by him to carry out this campaign.

Twenty-seven Tamil Nadu fishermen were arrested by the Sri Lankan Navy earlier today. The fishermen are suspected to have been engaged in illegal fishing in the Sri Lankan territorial waters.

These fishermen from Jegathapattinam and Kottaipattinam in Pudukkottai district were arrested off Neduntheevu (Delft) by the Sri Lankan Navy. Following the arrests, the fisherman along with five boats was taken to the Kankesanthurai Naval harbour.

In another incident, nearly 3,000 fishermen who had ventured into the sea last evening in 500 boats were driven away by Naval personnel while fishing near Katchatheevu.

On December 2, twenty fishermen from Nagapattinam district were arrested by the Navy on charges of fishing in the sea off Delft.