Aug 15 (AD) Minister C.B. Ratnayake has hinted that Matara District MP elect Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena will be appointed as the next Speaker of Parliament. Minister Ratnayake revealed this assuming duties at the Ministry of Wildlife and Forest Conservation today (14). Abeywardena, who polled over 80,000 votes from Matara District in the General Election 2020, was also present at this event. more..

Aug 15 (DN) Chief Sangha Nayake of the Sri Lanka Ramannya Nikaya Ven. Dr. Omalpe Sobhitha Thera said that if the tussle between the two factions of the Ape Janabala Pakshaya (AJP) (Our Power of People Party) over the National List continues, it would be a black mark on the Buddhist community. Speaking to the Daily News yesterday, the Thera said that such behaviour and courses of action by Buddhist prelates were inappropriate based on the principle of giving up everything. more..

Aug 15 (DN) SL Institute of Marketing (SLIM) held its 50th Annual General Meeting on 26th June 2020 at Marino Beach Hotel, adhering to the health and safety guidelines given by the govt. Roshan Fernando was officially elected as its 42nd President in the 50th year and a new Council of Management and an Executive Committee too was elected. Roshan Fernando currently holds the position of General Manager – Marketing at the renowned media station Derana. more..

Aug 15 (FT) SL’s exports declined by 26.4% in the first half of 2020, reducing from $ 5.9 billion in the same period last year to $ 4.4 billion, largely due to COVID-19 impact, CB said, but there was also silver lining in the offing with the June trade deficit declining to the lowest level since Aug 2009. Bucking the trend, June exports did better than the 39% decline recorded in May, with a 17.5% reduction of $ 894 million from $ 1,084 million more..

Aug 15 (DN) Minister of Fisheries Douglas Devananda having assumed duties yesterday at his ministerial premises made a sincere request to the Tamil Diaspora to invest in Sri Lanka. He noted that the current government is well aware that some of the businessmen constituting the Tamil Diaspora are victims of self-centered politicians and others who have deceived the Tamil speaking people. Consequently, they are afraid to invest in Sri Lanka due to the fear of extortionists. more..

Aug 15 (FT) Election Commission yesterday issued the Gazette with the names of the National List MPs of SBJ and NPP but the UNP and the monk-led OPP failed to meet the EC deadline and submit the names of their nominees by last evening. The SJB’s National List MPs are Ranjith Madduma Bandara, Tissa Attanayake, Imthiaz Bakeer Markar, Eran Wickramaratne, Harin Fernando, Mayantha Dissanayake, and Diana Gamage. NPP nominee is Harini Amarasuriya. more..

Aug 15 (CT) Police Media Spokesman, SSP Jaliya Senaratne revealed that illegally-earned money, amounting to over Rs 2,200 million, had been transacted by drug traffickers during the past fortnight. Senaratne added, a detailed probe has already been initiated to ascertain how this transacted money had been obtained, how the accrued money had been invested, what other properties had been acquired by peddlers more..

Aug 15 (Island) SLC has confirmed hosting Bangladesh in October with the three Tests reduced to two games in order to accommodate some limited over games. Board officials also confirmed that the postponed Lanka Premier League will take place for sure this year with the event expected to start in November, following the completion of IPL. SLC was expecting to host the inaugural edition of LPL later this month, but were forced to postpone the event as health authorities wanted strict quarantine more..

Aug 15 (Island) Newly elected TMTK (Thamil Makkal Thesiya Kuttani) MP C.V. Wigneswaran, on Thursday (13), vowed before the LTTE memorial at Mullivaikkal that he would fulfill the aspirations of the Tamil people. The retired Supreme Court justice and former Northern Province Chief Minister said that he wanted to make a commitment at Mulliwaikkal before taking oaths as a member of parliament on August 20. The ex-Chief Minister was accompanied by former TNA MP M. K. Sivajilingam. more..

Aug 15 (CT) The crisis within the UNP pertaining to its leadership has deepened as the Party Working Committee discussions ended in a stalemate. Following the Party’s defeat at the General Election, UNP Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe said he would resign from the Party Leadership. Subsequently, the names of eight senior UNP members were proposed to succeed him. They were Ravi Karunanayake, Akila Viraj more..

Aug 15 (FT) Schools are considered temples of learning, where the next generation is nurtured and nourished suitably to meet the demands of the society and the nation. A child spends 12-14 years of his/her life in school. These years see a child’s transformation from childhood to adolescence, and then to adulthood. Within this span of a dozen or more years, the child learns about the world, the different forces that govern it, the different kinds of people and their languages and cultures. more..

Aug 15 (FT) Sri Lankan universities are in turmoil and in deep trouble. University education is a critical component of development providing high-level skills and training in many professions. These trained individuals and skills drive the country’s economy and support civil society. The unprecedented increase in demand for higher education in Sri Lanka especially after 1980, led to increase in the number of universities and private higher education institutions. more..

Aug 15 (Island) Newly appointed Foreign Secretary Admiral Dr. Jayanath Colombage said that they had a vital role to play in post-war affairs. The first retired service Chief to hold the post of Foreign Secretary, Colombage expressed confidence in facing the challenges. The Foreign Ministry issued the following statement yesterday after the former Navy Commander moved in earlier in the day: “Admiral Prof. Jayanath Colombage (PhD) assumed duties as the Secretary to Foreign Ministry today (14) more..

Aug 15 (AD) Two more individuals have tested positive for the virus on today (15) increasing the total number of confirmed positive cases in the country to 2,888. The latest positive cases are 02 arrivals from the UAE and Turkey. 211 patients infected with the virus are currently under medical care. In the meantime, the number of recuperations from the disease moved up to 2,666 earlier today as 12 virus-infected patients were discharged from hospitals upon recovery. more..

Aug 15 (EN) The UGC has instructed all heads of Universities, to forward all complaints of ragging and gender-based violence to its Chairman, within seven days of receiving such complaints, along with the immediate actions taken by the relevant institution regarding the complaint. The instructions sent to all Vice-Chancellors of the Universities, Rectors of Campuses and Directors of Institutes, on Aug 10, by Chairman of the UGC, more..

Aug 15 (EN) The official gazette notification announcing the new cabinet has left out the defence portfolio despite President Gotabaya Rajapakasa’s office listing him in a press release as the minister in charge of the subject. A day after the swearing in ceremony at the Temple of the Tooth in Kandy, the secretary to the president, P. B. Jayasundera, issued the formal announcement by way of an extraordinary gazette listing the 25 cabinet ministers and their portfolios. more..

Aug 15 (CT) A new mobile app named Visit Sri Lanka is set for launch after receiving Cabinet approval, Chairperson of Sri Lanka Tourism, Kimarli Fernando noted. She told Ceylon Today that the app’s first edition – Version Zero, will be launched containing basic COVID-19-related information and arrival information. The United Nations Development Programme is developing the app using a European Union grant of 3.5 million Euros to Sri Lanka. “We also want our app included in more..

Aug 15 (ST) Chandani Swarnalatha was in the kitchen when the first blast occurred. “It sounded like the sound came from the sky so I ran onto the balcony to look,” she said, via telephone from Lebanon. “Then, in ten seconds, the second explosion happened.” She was thrown back into the house, said Swarnalatha, a 57-year-old from Galagedara in Kandy who cares for an aged woman in Achrafieh, one of settlements worst hit more..

Aug 15 (Island) Governor Central Province Lalith U. Gamage has warned all those in the cooperative sector of the province that stern action would be taken against those15 involved in corruption regardless of the status they enjoyed. Governor Gamage issued the warning at the appointment of members of the Board of Directors of the Central Province Cooperative Employees’ Pension Control Board. There were reports of corruption and malpractices in the co-operative sector more..

Aug 15 (AD) Ceylon Tobacco Company's performance in the three months ended 30th June 2020, has been significantly impacted due to the lockdown measures and impact to National as well as personal economies of consumers owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, company said in its latest quarterly financials. During the period under review, company's sales volumes declined by 38% with gradual resumption of activities from mid-May onwards. more..

Aug 15 (Island) Following Wednesday’s Court of Appeal order, suspending the arrest warrant on him, Kurunegala Mayor Thushara Sanjeewa was seen with the newly appointed Highways Minister Johnston Fernando on Thursday. Thushara was present when Minister Fernando launched a new project to rehabilitate the Wajuragnana road in Kurunagala. Addressing the gathering Minister explained why he had defended the Mayor although interested parties more..

Aug 15 (CT) NNP Leader Anura Kumara Dissanayaka said the Govt must divulge what clauses in 19th Amendment to the Constitution that it intends to repeal when the new Parliament convenes. He said apart from two Amendments to the Constitution, the others had been introduced to suit vested interests of those in power at the time. Dissanayaka said though several top figures in the Govt had mentioned about repealing the 19th Amendment, they had failed to clearly inform more..

Aug 15 (AD) The Govt of Vietnam on Friday donated medical supplies worth USD 30,000 (over Rs. 5 million) to Sri Lanka, in support of Sri Lanka’s fight against the COVID -19 pandemic, says the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Vietnam, Nguyen Quoc Dung made a symbolic handing over of the donation to Ambassador of Sri Lanka to Vietnam Prasanna Gamage at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Vietnam in Hanoi. Deputy Minister Dung, while bestowing the donation, more..

Aug 15 (AD) The squabble of the OPPP and the indecision of the UNP regarding its National List seats are yet to be drawn to an end. A conflictual situation emerged as the OPPP’s General Secretary Venerable Wedinigama Wimalatissa Thero submitted a letter to the Election Commission claiming that he has been nominated to enter parliament as the party’s National List MP. However, a group including the Chairman of the OPPP more..

Aug 15 (DM) The State Intelligence Service (SIS) was aware that Zahran Hashim had physical and mental capacity to conduct an attack in the country, even before it received the foreign intelligence on April 04, 2019 with regard to a possible terror attack, former State Intelligence Service (SIS) Director SDIG Nilantha Jayawardena yesterday testified before the PCoI probing Easter Sunday attacks. Responding to a question raised by a commissioner, SDIG Jayawardena said that he was more..

Aug 15 (CT) Minister of Justice, Ali Sabry PC, said the necessary legal framework was being formulated to repeal the 19th Amendment to the Constitution and to introduce the 20th Amendment. He stressed the Govt will first submit the draft to Cabinet for perusal. Meanwhile, Govt sources revealed the 20th Amendment will be tabled in Parliament mid-Sept. Govt’s attention has been drawn to clauses limiting the Presidential term to two, limiting of Prez’s tenure in office to 5 years, more..

Aug 15 (ST) SL political giants such as Former PM Ranil Wickremesinghe, the current leader of the UNP, with a parliamentary career that started 42 years ago, failed to secure seats in the Colombo district. He was the most prominent of the 74 MPs who lost their seats, most of them from the UNP and also other parties. Former Minister and UNP’s assistant leader Ravi Kaunanayake, was also unable to win from the Colombo district. more..

Aug 15 (EN) Profits at Lion Beer Plc fell 91% from a year earlier to 72.5 million rupees in the June 2020 quarter amid a Coronavirus lockdown and tourism downturn. Lion Beer reported earnings of 91% per share for the quarter. Revenues fell 45% to 6.4 billion rupees in the June quarter, cost of sales 41% to 5.32 billion rupees and gross profit fell 58% to 1.1 billion rupees. The firm reported finance income of 236 million rupees, expenses of 432 million rupees and net finance costs of 195 million rupees, more..

Aug 15 (ST) Jeevan Thondaman- (SLPP- Nuwara Eliya) Born 1994. Involved in politics with his father late Arumugan Thondaman. Followed law degree in India. Served as secretary and later as Chief Deputy Secretary of the Ceylon Workers’ Congress (CWC). Appointed CWC General Secretary following the death of his father in May. M. Rameshwaram - (SLPP- Nuwara Eliya). Served as treasury of the CWC Served in several Ministries-Tamil Education and Hindu Affairs and Agriculture in CPC. more..

Aug 15 (AD) Former PM Ranil Wickremesinghe has been issued summons to appear before the PCoI probing the alleged incidents of political victimization, on the 25th of August. He was previously issued summons to make an appearance at the PCoI on political victimization on the 21st of Aug. However, the PCoI probing the Easter Sunday terror attacks too had issued summons on the former prime minister to record a statement on the same day. more..

Aug 16 (SO) Now that the dust has settled on the General Election 2020 and its result, it is time to begin work in earnest. This is the message that was delivered by Prez Gotabaya Rajapaksa to all Cabinet and State Ministers who were sworn in on Wednesday at the historic Audience Hall in Kandy. In fact, Prez has told them that all formalities such as assuming duties must be completed by tomorrow, unlike in the past when Ministers took their own sweet time to get down to business. more..

Aug 16 (GV) According to the latest estimates by the UN, in 2019, 1.2 billion of the world’s population were between the ages of 15 and 24. That is one in every six people! Needless to say, a good number of that demographic have their liberty, dignity and fundamental rights stolen from them. Everyone may have a different idea of what liberty means to them. But the most common understanding of the concept might be the individual capacity or capability to act freely, without restriction or interference from more..

Aug 16 (SO) Our sister paper, the Dinamina recently interviewed PM Mahinda Rajapaksa who made history, winning the largest number of preferential votes in the Kurunegala district and was crowned as the four-time Prime Minister. Q: How do you feel about the sweeping victory of the SLPP at the recent General election? A: We anticipated victory right at the launch of the General election campaign. more..

Aug 16 (ST) My dear Mahinda maama and Gota maamey, I thought of writing to congratulate both of you, not only on the resounding victory the pohottuwa party recorded at the recent general election, but also on the choices you have made in selecting new ministers. From what we saw in the last few days, we are likely to see a govt like no other! Both of you deserve all the credit you can get for your election victory. Everyone knew you would win but it was the scale of your victory that more..

Aug 16 (CT) Prez Rajapaksa gets full marks for creating a comparatively lean and applaudably mean cabinet. Leaving out the likes of Maithripala Sirisena and Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe is among the best cabinet making decisions in SL’s 73-year history of cabinet govt. The less said of them the better, and, hopefully, there will be no second thought on the matter. After ten years of sickeningly bloated cabinets, five under Mahinda Rajapaksa monarchy and five more under more..

Aug 16 (CT) Ravinatha Aryasinha who was appointed as Secretary to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs during the failed coup by former prez Sirisena in Oct 2018 has been unceremoniously sacked from his post by Prez Rajapaksa. He has been replaced by former Navy Commander, Admiral Jayanath Colombage. Rtd Admiral is a Pathfinder Foundation alumnus and considered a China Specialist. He is one of four senior military more..

Aug 16 (ST) The week-old new govt has plunged into the deep end of controversy straightaway with prez Rajapaksa anointing himself with the portfolio of defence, notwithstanding the 19th amendment to the constitution that seemingly prohibits the prez from holding any ministerial office. That said, however, that the president has been careful not to gazette the appointment which technically makes it not legally binding and thus attracting a full blown constitutional crisis is noteworthy. more..

Aug 16 (Island) Cabinet making must necessarily b e a balancing act as various interests, including ethnic and religious, must be satisfied together with seniority claims and personal ambitions. Prez and PM must be congratulated for limiting the number of cabinet ministries, that had assumed obscene proportions in the past, to 25 including the PM although the 19th Amendment provides for 30 such appointments. It was possible to go much higher, as Sirisena–Wickremesinghe administration did, more..