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The role of spokespeople is to set out the official line of the bodies they represent so people not only in Sri Lanka but also the world over get things right. More so, with those speaking for the Government, it becomes essential. Former Media Minister Keheliya Rambukwella often did not get things right. This is why he was lampooned so much by cartoonists and became the butt end of media criticism. Some of the remarks he then made were not even near the truth.

Rambukwella’s successor, Minister Rajitha Senaratne, has not only outdone his predecessor as official spokesperson. He has also added one more dubious achievement, creating an international furore of sorts. In the process, other lesser known secrets have also come out.  At a news briefing, Minister Senaratne charged that the private maritime security firm Avant Garde Maritime Security Limited (AGMSL) had supplied weapons to Nigeria and that the arms had ended up in the hands of Boko Haram, the rebel group fighting in that country. The remark incensed the new Nigerian Government of military strongman Muhammadu Buhari who was elected President at the April 5 election.

His Government sent a strong protest to the Sri Lanka Government. Nigeria’s High Commissioner S.U. Ahmed called on Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera late last month to hand over a Third Person Note (TPN) which contained the protest. During talks between Minister Samaraweera and High Commissioner Ahmed, other details about the private security firm Avant Garde Limited, still under investigation by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), also emerged. Mr. Ahmed said he had been asked to convey to the Sri Lanka Government that Nigeria entered into a US$ 300 million contract to train sea marshals for their country and build a fleet of boats at a yard in Colombo with this firm, in the belief that it was part of the Government of Sri Lanka. The envoy said the Nigerian Government was unaware that it was a private entity.

Giving credence to such belief was a Sri Lanka military delegation which the head of the private security firm, retired Major Nissanka Senadipathi, led in June last year to Nigeria. Among those in the delegation were Chief of Defence Staff Lt. Gen. Jagath Jayasuriya, Army Commander Lt. Gen. Daya Ratnayake, Navy Commander Vice Admiral Jayantha Perera and Chief of National Intelligence (CNI) retired Major General Kapila Hendavithana. Avant Garde has publicly admitted that a military delegation went to Nigeria and released a photograph where these former top security officials are featured. They were in civilian clothes in that photograph.

The photograph published with this story was taken in the Nigerian capital of Abuja where the then serving military officials are in their official uniform. Also in the picture is Damayanthi Jayaratne who was then Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Defence and has now been transferred to the pool in the Ministry of Public Administration. Mr. Senadipathy, in coat and tie, stands in the middle next to Navy Commander, Vice Admiral Jayantha Perera who is in white uniform. Seated are senior Nigerian defence and security officials.

Translator again distorts President’s message
In what is clearly an acute embarrassment to the Government of Sri Lanka, a distorted official text of what President Maithripala Sirisena told US Secretary of State John Kerry during official talks last week, has been handed over to the United States Embassy in Colombo. That is for onward transmission to the State Department in Washington D.C. The reason – the simultaneous translator who interpreted President Sirisena’s speech in Sinhala had added his own words or deleted some creating an entirely erroneous impression. That was not what the President of Sri Lanka had wanted to convey.

Making matters worse was the fact that a similar incident had also occurred when Sirisena visited Britain and was holding talks with Premier David Cameron. His Conservative Party has won this week’s parliamentary elections giving Mr Cameron another five-year term. Now, the Presidential Secretariat has hurriedly placed advertisements in the local newspapers calling for applications for “Recruitment to the Posts of Interpreters/Translators…” Applicants have been told to apply before May 15 –  a move to ensure qualified personnel are recruited immediately. The advertisement has said that the “salary is negotiable.”
Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera who had just ended a news conference at Siri Kotha, the United National Party (UNP) headquarters in Kotte, and was walking out when he was accosted by a journalist. He was asked about the translation fiasco. Samaraweera admitted somewhat embarrassingly that it had happened.

Jokingly, he was asked “why don’t you hire G.L. Peiris. He is very good in both Sinhala and English?” Replied a witty Samaraweera: “We can consider that after the parliamentary elections.”

Carrom and draughts: Pocket it
The campaign offices for the re-election of Mahinda Rajapaksa at the January 8 Presidential election were provided with carrom and draught boards (daam leli) at state expense costing Rs. 29 million. Then Sports Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage placed the order for this purpose through the Co-operative Wholesale Establishment (CWE), inquiries by the Financial Crimes Investigations Division (FCID) have revealed.

On Friday, detectives recorded a statement from the then Sports Ministry Secretary, retired Major General Nanda Mallawaratchchi, to confirm the placing of this order. It has been revealed that the carrom and draught boards had been imported in 16 container loads. Each container had 14,000 boards of the two varieties.
The idea behind providing the campaign offices with these boards, a Police Official said, was to provide the campaign staff some recreation facilities when they gathered at the offices. This had ensured that crowds were present playing carrom and draughts most of the time.

Even American sniffer dogs came with Kerry
A security team assigned to the State Department was in Colombo for two weeks before US Secretary of State John Kerry came here.
Its task was to ensure that matters related to security were planned well ahead. So much so, the security for the public event at Taj Samudra — the lecture under the auspices of the Lakshman Kadirgamar Institute of International and Strategic Studies — was the talking point among the guests.
They passed through the metal detector without any hassle. “There was a marked difference from our events where the visitor would have been frisked from head to toe,” said a Police officer.
It was hassle free for the media too. Camera crews were told to place their equipment in one place and step back. A sniffer dog which accompanied the security men all the way from US sniffed around and it was “all clear” thereafter.
A senior State Department official was to remark to Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera, “You don’t need any more PR firms to promote your country. The group that came in with Secretary Kerry and really liked your beautiful country, will spread the word.”

Lankan lamprais, kevum and kokis for Secretary of State
Perhaps for the first time, US Secretary of State John Kerry was given a taste of Sri Lankan made lamprais — a Dutch Burgher delicacy of rice and accompaniments baked in a banana leaf – on his visit to Sri Lanka.
It was served at lunch hosted at “Temple Trees,” the previous Saturday by
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.
Among the desserts were the Avurudu delicacies like kevun and kokis.

FCID seeks court order to check Udayanga’s  container
The Financial Crimes Investigation Division (FCID) is going to court to seek an order to examine a container load of personal effects sent to Colombo by Udayanga Weeratunga, Sri Lanka’s former Ambassador to Russia. This is in view of the FCID now conducting investigations into two major cases where Mr. Weeratunga is allegedly involved. One is providing weapons to pro-Russian groups fighting the government of Ukraine. The other is the procurement of MiG-27 ground attack aircraft,reportedly outdated, from Ukraine at fancy prices.

Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera said on Friday that Mr. Weeratunga had telephoned the Sri Lanka Embassy in Teheran to urge it to advise the Foreign Ministry to release the container to a person nominated by him.  FCID detectives want to question Mr. Weeratunga but are unable to reach him. A team will leave for the Ukranian capital of Kiev next week for detailed investigations into the two cases.

This is while Interpol Headquarters has reported to the FCID that there was no company called Bellimissa Holdings Limited operating in Britain. The payments for the purchase of the MiG-27 aircraft had been remitted to an office in London but it has now been confirmed that such an address does not exist.