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A former Cabinet Minister from the plantation highlands is now under investigation by the Financial Crimes Investigation Division (FCID) over the use of fuel for his official vehicle for more than a year.

Detectives alleged he had utilised Rs 7.6 million unlawfully. At first fuel has been pumped from the Ministry’s funds. When it had been exhausted, the Minister had directed a state enterprise coming under his Ministry to foot the bill, they said.

In the course of the investigations, the detectives revealed that the Minister’s successor, who is from the North Central Province, has continued the same practice. So far, they said Rs 1.59 million worth of fuel had been used.

Officials who served the former Minister have made statements to the FCID. The detectives are to question him. Immediately thereafter, detectives said, they would probe the current Minister’s fuel transactions as well.

The complaint against the former minister was received at the Anti-Corruption Bureau and was forwarded to the FCID for action.

Modi visit: Twists and turns behind the scenes

It is all too well known that Ports and Shipping Minister Arjuna Ranatunga is a strong opponent of the deal as it stands to hand over the Hambantota Port to a Chinese company.

Minister Mano Ganesan compering at the meeting at Dickoya

This is probably why eyebrows were raised when President Maithripala Sirisena who, amidst cabinet ministers and other VIPs, exhorted Mr. Ranatunga to join his entourage to fly to the hill country. They were accompanying Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi who declared open a hospital in Dickoya and later addressed a rally in Norwood near Hatton.

It was last Tuesday that the Cabinet of Ministers discussed the Concession Agreement between the Government and the Chinese company for the Hambantota Port, a legally binding document.

The President made the loud appeal to Mr. Ranatunga to join him just after the UN backed international conference on Vesak ended at the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall (BMICH).

Political parties representing those in the central hills had collected large sums of money for the Modi event from Tamil businessmen in Colombo. Yet, they failed to hire a compere for the Modi rally.

That work was carried out by Minister Mano Ganeshan. In addition to making a speech himself, he kept announcing who the other speakers would be. That included both President Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.

Both Mr. Ganeshan and former Minister Arumugam Thondaman were on the same stage. Mr. Thondaman, now no longer the Lord and Master of the plantations, was seated in the second row while Mr. Ganeshan and Minister P. Digambaram were in the front row.

A request by Vinayagamoorthy Muralathiran alias Karuna, the former LTTE deputy turned SLFP vice president turned his own party leader, for a meeting with Premier Modi did not materialise.

VOA station land given back to Lanka
The National Policies and Economic Affairs Ministry has obtained confirmation from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that the land where the Voice of America (VOA) was located at Iranawila is now with the Government.

The Director General (Legal) has told the Ministry which is under the charge of the Prime Minister that “in compliance with diplomatic practice, a diplomatic note verbale which is sent by one party to another and a response received for same in the form of a note verbale is universally accepted as constituting an Agreement between the two parties.”

He adds: “Accordingly, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has responded to the Diplomatic Note sent by the Embassy of the United States of America (USA) dated 22nd December 2016 on the 28th of December 2016. Hence, please note that the note verbale of the Embassy of the USA and the response of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs constitute an Agreement between the Government of Sri Lanka and the Government of the United States of America to terminate the 1951 Broadcast Agreement and the 1991 Lease Agreement. In view of the above, please note that the above Agreements remain terminated with effect from 31st December 2016.”

Official committee to fast-track process for investors
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Management (CCEM) has appointed an official committee to assist investors to obtain early approvals for projects in Sri Lanka.

It is headed by the Secretary to the Ministry of Development Strategies and includes the Secretary to the Ministry of Law and Order and the Secretary to the Ministry of Ports and Shipping.

As can be seen, no representative of the Board of Investment has been named to the committee.
The CCEM has also decided that an official familiar with investment matters and exports in the Ministry of Development Strategies and International Trade should be tasked with handling the two subjects there.